


Drawn To a Close

by Rubicksmaster



Series: Gangstuck [5]
Category: Homestuck
Genre: All Characters Involved, Gen, includes some ships
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-28
Updated: 2019-01-08
Packaged: 2019-02-23 06:41:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 18
Words: 21,500
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13184496
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rubicksmaster/pseuds/Rubicksmaster
Summary: Karkat is going to end what was started.





	1. Prologue

Sollux had wiped Cronus’s computer when he ran away. It’s what they had all agreed would be best when they first started meeting. If they were in any trouble, any evidence they had would be erased to avoid compromising anyone else.

He sent a file to Karkat before everything was erased. It wasn’t unusual; Karkat had been picking things from Kankri’s computer the moment he left just in case. Pictures, stories, anything that he could use to remember his older brother. 

He opened the file and saw a long list of names. Nepeta was over one day and helped him comb through the names. Every single one was recently murdered. Cronus had kept a record. A record of every murder he had witnessed under orders of the Condesce. 

They didn’t have a Psionic to leak the information to. His website had been shut down after his public execution. The Psionic. Karkat added his name. Sollux had shut himself away for a few days after that one, and Mituna wouldn’t talk to anyone except for Latula.

The Captors were over frequently. So were the Megidos and the Nitrams. The house never felt empty. Even if Ms. Paint frequently broke down in tears. Even if Spades returned to the attitude he adopted when his father had died, coping with the loss of his friend with a generous amount of alcohol.

Nitrams. The Summoner didn’t have to be added on Cronus’s list. He had put it there himself.

Realistically, losing four people wasn’t too bad, especially since the Summoner hadn’t known about their meetings. With the numbers they had, they were doing great. 

But this wasn’t something he could look at with the lenses of statistics, especially because he fucking hated math.These were people. Real people with real lives, whose losses he felt every day.

The Condesce had to pay.


	2. Chapter 1: The Blacklist

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Uhgghhg okay listen.... I don't know when I'll be able to post again. I've written up to chapter 7, so ya'll KNOW I'm not giving up on this, so don't worry about that. The only problem is I'm flying back home tomorrow and going back to school the next day... Yeah, not a lot of time left for updates, sorry. So if the next chapter comes out in like, four months, that's why. Sorry. Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, I appreciate any and all feedback, and I will try to be back soon. Until next time~

Karkat had been sleeping in more and more. This was probably a very blatant sign of depression, but none of his friends were willing to point it out. Not even certified mom friend Kanaya. Better he got too much sleep than too little. 

It was Vriska that ended up waking him with a phone call. “Huh?” he answered, still mostly asleep.

“Karkat? What’s the matter?”

“You woke me up.”

“It’s two in the afternoon.”

“My statement still stands.”

“Fuck, Karkat, get your shit together.”

“Was there a point to this, or?”

“Yes! There is a point! A severely important point! Some congressman came to the casino the other night and got completely wasted.”

“Fun. Your mom got more blackmail material.”

“Yeah. It was hilarious, he pissed in a fake houseplant and got a horn stuck in one of the lights. But blackmail wasn’t all we got.”

Karkat sat up and rubbed his eyes. “What else did you get?”

“After his sixth drink he started bragging about several investigations against the Signless’s past movements. It was already suspicious when the Psionic was outed as a traitor, but the fact that Kankri assisted Cronus may have got things rolling.”

Karkat sighed. “Which means the Disciple and the Dolorosa are gonna be getting shit. And so will Spades, and the rest of the Midnight Crew.”

“Same for you, dumbass. And the rest of our friends that are related to them.”

“Shut the fuck up.”

“Calm your man tits, Karkat. Besides, the Dolorosa is safe. Nobody wants to fuck with Rainbow Drinkers. Way too much voodoo associated with it.”

“Great,” Karkat said as sarcastically as possible. “I’ll spread the word.” He hung up and fell back onto his bed. He felt less like the leader of the group and more of the messenger. He sent out a text to his friends and finally managed to get up. He should probably eat something. 

Downstairs, Ms. Paint was watching tv alone. “Where’s Spades?” 

She looked startled. “Karkat! I thought you were going to sleep all day again.” Karkat winced, being faced with his fucked sleep schedule. “He went to Droog’s house. Why?”

“Just curious.” He scratched his head and walked to the kitchen. 

“Karkat, do you need me to do some laundry?” 

“Huh?” Karkat replied, searching for something to eat in the cupboard. 

“You’ve been wearing the same sweater for three days, honey.” Karkat looked down to see he indeed was wearing the same sweater he had been wearing for three days. Wait, no, it had been four days. Curiously, he sniffed the collar, then recoiled in disgust. 

“Fucking gross,” he whispered. He closed the cupboard and said, “No, don’t worry about it. I’m gonna go shower.”

He picked out some clean (okay, better smelling) clothes and jumped into the shower. He relished the hot water that poured onto him, scrubbing off the grime that had accumulated on him during his apathetic state. By the time he got out, he felt like a changed troll.

No he didn’t. He was still kind of sad, still unbelievably anxious, and generally tired. The only thing that had changed was he was a lot cleaner, and his hair was damp.

When he went back downstairs, he saw Ms. Paint visibly relax. He wasn’t quite sure when she became a mother to him, but she had, and he couldn’t imagine the pain of watching Kankri die only to see him isolate himself. 

A shower was a start. Fuck it, he could at least make it look like he was doing good. He returned to the kitchen, where he grabbed a bag of chocolate pretzels. “Do you have any plans today? Any friends coming over?”

Karkat shrugged, sitting beside her. “I don’t think so. It’s too dangerous to meet up with anyone, especially here.”

“Fair enough. I could take you somewhere. It might do you some good to get you out of the house.”

Karkat thought for a moment. There was a certain asshole he hadn’t seen in awhile. A certain shades-wearing that had been through even more than him.

 

In less than twenty minutes Ms. Paint dropped him off in front of Lalonde’s house. He knocked on the door and Ms. Lalonde answered. “Karkat! What brings you here, sweetheart?” A wine glass was in her hand, and there was indeed red liquid in it, but she wasn’t slurring yet, so that was good. 

“Hi, Mrs. Lalonde. I came by to see Dave. Is he home?”

“Sure thing. Come on in, hun.” She left to get Dave, and Karkat waited in front of the door. Dirk had eventually gotten kicked out of the Harley’s, given that he and Dave wouldn’t have both fit in their home. So Mrs. Lalonde, with a past with Bro Strider and more than enough room, took them in. 

“What the fuck do you want?” Dave asked when he saw Karkat.

“I don’t know. For some goddamn moronic reason, I thought it’d be a fan-fucking-tastic idea to hang out with you.”

Dave cracked a grin. “Me and John were playing video games upstairs. Wanna join in?”

“Please.” Dave led him upstairs into one of the guestrooms, where John was buried under a blanket with a bag of chips and a controller in front of him. 

“Hey Karkat!” he said. “It’s been forever!”

“Not long enough.” 

John pouted. “Harsh!”

“Whatcha guys playing?”

“Call of Duty 26,” Dave replied.

“Is that the one where it reenacts the first conflicts between trolls and humans?”

“Nah, you’re thinking 29. This one is kind of dumb. You just fight all the monsters on the planet.”

“Yeah, this one blows,” John said, shooting one of the aforementioned monsters on screen. 

“It’s so bad I got it from free at the GameHive,” Dave laughed. “They were trying to get them off the shelves.”

“Well, if it’s exactly what you didn’t pay for,” Karkat said, picking up an extra controller and joining in. 

“So, how’ve you been holding up?” Dave asked. 

“Eh.” Dave didn’t say anything, but nodded and returned his focus to the game.

John looked between them before saying, “Really?”

“What?” Karkat and Dave said at the same time.

“That’s where you’re going to leave it? ‘Eh.’ You’re basically in the same spot! You both lost a brother! You can just, talk it out and have a bro hug and be bros and comfort each other in your bro time of need.”

Dave looked at Karkat, then at John. “Nah. We don’t need to go more in depth or anything. Wen just get each other, you know? Me and Karkat share a special bro bond. A brond, if you will.”

“If you ever say such a thing to me again I will tear your fucking head off and devour it with no hesitation.”

“Exactly. Don’t worry about it, bud. We get each other.”

John rolled his eyes and turned off his controller. “Whatever you say. I gotta go, Dad told me to be home, like, an hour ago, and I don’t want to push him any further.”

“Good luck,” Karkat said.

“Thanks. I’ll catch you guys later.”

They played a versus match once John left, Karkat playing as one of the monsters, and Dave playing as one of the humans. “Wasn’t there a game you could play as a monster that you could evolve in game to fuck the other players over?”

“Probably. There’s a game for everything.”

Dave hummed in agreement. “Hey, Vriska mentioned that the Condesce is singling out some of us.”

“Since when do you talk Spider bitch?” Karkat asked. 

“I don’t, really,” Dave replied. “She told Kanaya, Kanaya told Rose, and Rose told all of us.”

“The grapevine of flighty broads,” Karkat sighed. “You guys don’t have to worry about, it’s just her newest way of cracking down on other trolls.”

“Yeah, but you should still tell everyone. What’s the point of trying to overthrow the Condesce if we can’t even work together? Teamwork makes the dream work, man.”

Karkat shuddered. “Never say that again, for the sake of everything fucking holy in this godforsaken planet.”

“Someone’s not a team player.”

“Look, I’ll keep everyone updated and shit. I’ve just been falling behind.”

Behind the shades, Karkat wasn’t sure whether or not he was staring at him. He shifted under the possible gaze, and Dave said, “Whatever.”

They kept playing their game. Karkat stayed for a few hours before deciding that he could only stand to lose so many games. He didn’t bother calling Ms. Paint for a ride home, wanting to get some energy out by walking. 

The streets weren’t exactly safe for mutants anymore, but they never really had been, and he had at least been making an effort to know how to defend himself. It was just getting dark, and the street lamps were now on, lighting the streets. The only people walking around him were midbloods and highbloods. He got more than a few odd looks.

He was halfway home when he felt an odd sensation. He looked behind him. There was nobody following him. He rubbed the back of his neck and quickened his pace. The feeling didn’t go away, and he began to jog. 

Then something fell from the sky, and he felt a sharp pain on his head before blacking out.


	3. Chapter 2: In Media Res

He came to in an alley, behind a dumpster. Two midbloods stood in front of him. One hissed, “We need to figure out what in the fuck we’re doing here, or we’re so boned.”

“We’re not boned,” the other replied. “We talk to Rhysie, she knows a guy who knows the Condesce. She can take care of it.”

“Just because you want to get in Rhysie’s pants doesn’t mean you can just blindly trust her! At least take me out to dinner if you want to fuck me over, Christ!”

Karkat repressed a moan. Fuck, they were loud. Obnoxiously loud, to the point where he almost wanted to call their attention to him simply to ask them to act a little less like tweens. Okay. Just two midbloods who probably recognized the resemblance between him and his father and thought they could get something from the Condesce. He could take them.

Spades refused to let him leave home without at least three knives. His policy on never not bringing a weapon wasn’t new, of course, but now he wanted Karkat to resemble a walking arsenal. The scythe he kept in his bag was, well, in his bag, which was still in his room. The knife in his pocket had been taken, probably by the chuckle fucks in front of him. But the knife in his sleeve was still there, and so was the one in his boot.

Gripping his knife, he kicked one of the trolls as hard as he could in the shin. The troll howled, and their friend looked to Karkat, bewildered. “What the fuck? You were out fucking cold! Triusk, what the fuck?”

Karkat couldn’t work up the willpower to respond. Instead, he got to his feet, grit his teeth, and threw a punch at not-Triusk. He dodged, and Triusk, recovering from his shin, rushed at Karkat, grabbing him by his waist and pinning him against the wall. Dammit, why was he so small?

As Triusk held him up, the other one took out a switchblade. “You fucked up now, mutie,” Triusk said, grinning at the glistening blade. The troll brought the knife closer to Karkat’s stomach.

“Might as well mark him up, right?”

“Right,” Triusk said, his eyes not leaving Karkat’s. His friend’s eyes flickered from Karkat to his knife. Hesitation. He could work with that.

Karkat kicked his legs, catching Triusk right in the, well, right in the soft spot. He dropped Karkat and fell to his knees, clutching his groin in pain. Karkat fell to the ground and immediately hit the other troll’s knife out of his hand. Then he pushed him aside and ran.

Triusk was incapacitated, but his friend still had enough left in him to chase after him. They had probably carried him to the alley, but they hadn’t strayed too far from Karkat’s walk home. Granted, running home probably wasn’t the best option. So he went to the worst possible place he could. 

The Makara’s door was open to anyone willing to enter, of course. And the Grand Highblood was gone often enough on what everyone presumed was a daily murder spree that nobody was as afraid to visit. The best part? It had a reputation, and a fucking good one at that. He ran straight to it, pushing past people through the streets and leaping over steps and curbs.

The friend was hollering behind him, trying to get a passerby to stop him. Dumbass. Nobody wanted to get involved. Soon enough, he caught on to where Karkat was leading him, and the pounding footsteps behind him faded into nothing.

He slowed to a stop in front of the rundown apartment building. This was the exact area that beggars, prostitutes, and drug dealers. But no, only one lone troll who looked doped out of his mind on sopor wandered in front of the building. The GHB’s return and continued stay in the city made the area one not just an intimidating place, but a serious threat.

He went into the building. There was utter silence. He wouldn’t be surprised if every tenant had left to avoid the GHB. He looked around. Multi-colored paints colored the wall. Gamzee was a wild child, and he probably wanted to decorate. Then he remembered that this building was home to a literal sociopath, and felt the strong urge to retch at what might have been traditional Alternian paint. Some gross sense of curiosity forced him to step closer to the wall and sniff.

Nope. That was definitely acrylic paint. Gamzee, then.

From upstairs came a loud, sudden honk that made Karkat jump a foot out of his skin. Then a loud, “Motherfucker!”

“Gamzee?” Karkat called.

“Karbro!” There were a few more honks, and a door on the second floor opened. Gamzee poked his head over the stairwell and Karkat smiled at him. His moods were more mercurial than even Sollux’s these days. Days working within the PA as a talented mercenary were taking a toll on him. “What is up man?”

“Got in some trouble is all,” Karkat replied. “I need to hang low for a bit until shit calms down.”

“Trouble how?” Gamzee asked, concerned.

“The usual.”

“There’s a lot of motherfucking usual trouble for you. Need some more details, bud.”

“True. Two dickshits knocked me out to sell me to the Condesce.” Gamzee didn’t say anything, but bit his lip and narrowed his eyes. Karkat continued. “I look like my dad, is all. Just my fucking luck, I get all of the trouble.” His throat started to burn, and he willed everything to stop. He had to get over this. 

Every time he looked in the mirror, he was taken aback. He was a bit taller, his eyes a bit redder, and his slight fat was replaced with slight muscle. He always felt Kankri would be the spitting image of their father, and he’d look like a bad counterfeit. Yet, here they were. 

That didn’t help. Thinking about Kankri made his throat burn more, and it took twice as much effort to stop.

“Karkat?” He was dragged back into reality, and Gamzee stared at him questioningly. Something must have taught him basic social graces, as he didn’t mention anything. Instead, he repeated what he said. “I don’t think it was just because.”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, the Batterbitch is gonna be wanting you real fucking soon. And anyone else close to the Signless.”

“Fuck. The blacklist bullshit she came up with. I thought that wouldn’t happen for another week.”

“Nope. Started yesterday.”

“So the odds that I’m not the only one who got chased by fucking asshats?”

Gamzee grinned and raised his arms up in the air. “Super motherfucking high.”

Karkat sighed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, sorry for the delay, school sucks, and it always will. Oh well. Hopefully I'll get another chapter out soonish. I hope you enjoyed, thanks for reading, and please stay tuned for more. Until next time~


	4. Chapter 3: The Long and Winding Road

Gamzee walked Karkat home, managing to be tall and mangled enough to intimidate anyone that might’ve bothered Karkat if he had been alone. “Hey, where’s Kurloz?”

“With Dad or some shit,” Gamzee replied. “Ever since Cronus and Kankri got got,” Karkat winced at this, but Gamzee continued, “the Condesce got more strict about family getting involved. Can’t be let in if they might talk.”

“What, they suspect you’re up to something?”

“Nah, but I talk too much. Which isn’t a problem with Kurloz.”

“Right.” Although it still didn’t make sense. Meulin and Kurloz might as well have been sewn together for how much time they spent with each other, and, with one being deaf and on being mute, they figured out how to get the message across without being chatty. “We should keep an eye on him.”

“I trust my brother.”

“I know, dipshit. It’s the fact that the GHB trusts him that’s rubbing me in all the wrong ways.”

Gamzee didn’t reply, but the walk home got significantly more awkward. His weak point was still his family, and any slightly negative reference to them was a low blow for Gamzee. Regardless of his feelings, Kurloz’s involvement weighed heavily on Karkat’s mind. No matter how you looked at it, Kurloz and Meulin were a repulsive couple, spending most of their time together. For fuck’s sake, they literally had a telepathic connection. 

Karkat shook his head. He could think about this later, when he could talk to Terezi, or Sollux. This crack down within the PA had other ramifications. Equius and Horuss had had an obvious disconnect from their father after he the deaths of Cronus and Kankri. He had no direct role in their execution, but they knew he put up no fight. Not like it would’ve made a difference if he did. 

As for Eridan, barely anyone could speak to him. The same went for Feferi. They both just stopped responding to any messages. It wasn’t immediately after Cronus’s death, as they responded to the many friends who reached out to them. It was only days ago, probably when the Condesce had started cracking down. And what of Eridan’s friends, who had managed to help Kankri and Cronus live on borrowed time?

What about Meenah, who had been the first act of defiance against any of the highblood parents? Aranea and Vriska would both fight tooth and claw to keep her safe, but whether or not Mindfang would turn her in was always a question worth asking. If she was given the choice, that is. Meenah might just turn up dead one day.

“Gonna wait for me to open the door or what, bro?” Gamzee asked. They had managed to get to Karkat’s house without saying another word, surprisingly enough. That had to have been a sore spot to keep Gamzee quiet for more than five minutes. 

Karkat opened the door, letting Gamzee in. Nobody was home. Maybe Slick was with the rest of the Midnight Crew at someone else’s place, someone who’s home wasn’t so empty. Maybe he finally treated Ms. Paint to a nice lunch somewhere. 

“Well, I’ll get going,” Gamzee said.

“Fucking finally.” Feeling as though he should apologize, Karkat said, “Don’t go home. Try to hang out with Tavros. It can’t be healthy to be stuck with Boxcars and the King of Silent Stammers and Red Hair Dye.”

“You’re just saying that ‘cause you had the hugest motherfucking crush on him.”

“Like you didn’t.”

“I like me a man in leather pants. Whatevs. See you ‘round, Karbro.” 

Karkat waved him out the door, only slightly annoyed. Thinking of Tavros’s living situation had given him an idea. The Midnight Crew had invested in multiple smaller safe houses, but one they rarely used was a large enough to house Spades, Droog, Boxcars, and Deuce if an issue were to arise. While it would be far too small to house all of his friends, it could certainly fit the Leijons and Maryams, who were currently defenseless. 

Spades and Ms. Paint didn’t get home until late. He would’ve minded more if he hadn’t grown so accustomed to being alone. He kept the front door locked and stayed in his room, trying to be as silent as possible as he tried to code. This didn’t work, and a long string of swears would leave his mouth every minute or so.

“Sorry we kept you, kid,” Spades said. Both he and Ms. Paint shared the scent of alcohol, although he wore it better. Kankri’s death had brought a few odd changes. Spades was more of an asshole (surprising, he knew) and Ms. Paint had gotten to know Spades’s good old pals Jack and Daniel. She had yet to come home completely wasted, but seemed tipsy on a few occasions.

“Not like I’m not used to it,” Karkat shrugged, allowing Ms. Paint to wrap her arms around him in a somewhat lopsided hug. 

“We were with the rest of the Crew. Everyone, for once. Got the word out to steer clear of any high and mighty fucking highbloods.”

“Why?”

“Don’t need another excuse for the Condesce to try and take me out. I got plenty of dirt on her, I’m your only family, and my other son led the first coup against her on this planet.”

Ms. Paint winced, and Karkat felt every ounce of her weird, maternal pain. “And I’m the only relative of the Signless. Can’t forget that.”

“Especially not that.”

Karkat decided that was probably enough talking about his imminent assassination, and launched into asking if they could hide the Maryam and Leijon families. Spades replied no, the Dolorosa was not a troll anyone would willingly fuck with, and the Disciple was more feral cat than troll. Karkat argued that the same wouldn’t apply to Porrim, Kanaya, Meulin, and Nepeta. Spades said that Porrim and Meulin were both carbon copies of their respective mothers, Kanaya had enough brains to remain out of trouble, and Nepeta had been kicking his ass for years.

It only got worse when Ms. Paint didn’t believe him, and he had to show off an ancient video of a five year old grub Karkat getting his chubby ass absolutely handed to him by a cat-onesie wearing Nepeta, who was giggling away.

“That’s not the point,” Karkat said, trying to bring attention to literally anything else. “The Condesce could easily kill any of my friends like she did the Psionic, or the Summoner. Whatever plan she has is already working. I almost got kidnapped just so some low level dickholes could sell me to the PA!”

“Kidnapped?” Ms. Paint exclaimed. She looked to Spades, whose expression of perpetual pissed off hadn’t changed.

“Almost! They were idiots and I fought them off.”

“Good,” Spades said. “Any affiliation?”

“I couldn’t tell. They were midbloods. They just wanted to get in the Condesce’s good graces, I think.”

“If they aren’t in PA, how’d they find out that the Condesce wanted you?”

Karkat shrugged. “Gamzee didn’t mention who else might know, but he doesn’t have much access to what’s happening anymore.”

A phone started buzzing, and Spades took his own out of his pocket. “What’s up, Droog?” There was a full minute where Spades didn’t say a word. Then, “We’ll be right over.”

“What’s going on?” Ms. Paint asked. 

“Pack up. We gotta leave. Five minutes, and then we’re going to the casino.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So.... Sorry. I was busy with school. Senior year is wild guys. Colleges fucking wrekt me and I was in almost exclusively college and AP courses so I was a busy kid. But I never forgot about this story. Months of thought have gone into this plot, and I'm so happy to finally be back with more. Thank you so much for waiting, and I promise the next update will be much sooner. Until next time~


	5. Chapter 4: Oh, Memories

Karkat had been keeping a bag packed and ready to leave ever since he was kept hidden from Lord English. He carried his bag to the car and helped Ms. Paint get her things as Spades contacted other members of the Midnight Crew. This wasn’t the first time they had to evacuate. When Karkat had first moved in with Spades, the recent assassination of the Signless had created an excited uproar amongst gangs. One of them attempted to attack the Midnight Crew and assassinate the four leaders. They were squashed with little effort, but Spades had Karkat and Kankri moved to the safe house regardless. 

Kankri had helped pack Karkat’s bag and was responsible for keeping Karkat behaved so as not to distract their chauffeur. Karkat was old enough to not act like a complete and utter asshole 24/7, but Kankri refused to let go of his hand and offer comforting words. Karkat thought it was stupid then. Why would anyone go after them? It wasn’t widely known who the Vantas boys ended up with, and anyone with half a brain would assume social services instead of the uncaring alcoholic crime boss. In fact, Karkat still thought it was still stupid. But he appreciated the effort, especially now.

His cheeks were wet. He hastily wiped them with his sleeve, shocked to find that he was crying. What in the fresh fuck, how’d he manage that without realizing? 

“I have everything. Where’s Spades?” Ms. Paint shut her bag and stared at him. “Sweetheart?”

“Still downstairs,” Karkat replied, holding his hand out for her bag.

“You can talk about it instead of holding it in.”

Fuck that. “I think we should get going. Our five minutes were up three minutes ago.”

Ms. Paint gave him a pitiful look that spurred him to hurry outside. Spades was talking to their driver, a carapace that Karkat recognized from a blatant scar across their jaw. It made sense that whoever was guarding them was a recurring member in the Crew; traitors were anywhere and everywhere.

Spades only began to explain once they were all cramped inside the back of the car, where the tinted windows offered a meager amount of privacy to to outside world. “Spades, what’s going on?” Ms. Paint asked.

“Someone tried to run Mituna over. He’s in the hospital for now, and he should be out soon, but it looks like the Condesce’s list might’ve been more serious than we thought.”

“No shit,” Karkat muttered. “Is he okay?”

“Fuckin’ said he’d be out soon, didn’t I?” Spade’s rolled his eyes. “He’s got a broken wrist and ankle, and he might have a concussion, but a spurt of psionic power took the brunt of the impact.”

Mituna hadn’t shown a hint of controllable psionic power since he became brain damaged. He should be dead right now. Karkat clenched his jaw and asked, “What about Clubs and Sollux?”

“They’re with him in the hospital. Sollux is making sure nobody comes to finish the job, and Clubs is there because he thinks he’s helping. Droog’s taking the Handmaiden’s kids, because she and the Condesce were never on good terms, and Boxcars’s bringing the Summoner’s kids, because he tried damn hard to keep your Dad’s legacy alive.”

“What’s going on with everyone else?”

“We’ll call the Dolorosa and the Disciple once we get to the casino. For now, we need to meet up with the Midnight Crew and work out how the fuck we’re dealing with this, and it’s not safe to leave either of you home.”

“Hold on, Ms. Paint kicked, like, three dudes’s asses last I remember,” Karkat said. “Couldn’t we stay behind and get some of my friends to rally and do something?”

“They were Felt, not PA,” Ms. Paint replied. “Besides, you’re a much bigger target than you were before. You present an actual threat now. They’re likely to send more experienced trolls who I couldn’t fend off.”

Karkat frowned. “We need to get a hold of Mindfang.” She had been harboring Meenah for months, meaning she was as good as dead.

“You can get in contact with everyone once we get to the casino.” Spades looked out the window. The streets were nearly empty. The curfew had been effective at keeping humans and lowbloods off the street. It was a convenient excuse for highblood officers to dick around with any poor bastards still on the street. 

Not for the first time, Karkat wondered if this new planet was turning into Alternia, a planet whose government grew so vast and tyrannical that it collapsed upon itself. 

The Midnight Crew’s casino, aptly named The Void, was one of the largest in the country. It was twenty floors, each floor dedicated to a different game. Slots on one floor, craps on another, cards on another. There was also a lesser known basement level where meetings were held if all members were needed.

Business had been booming since the Condesce’s rise to power. There were plenty of highbloods with far too much money to spend who wanted to play there chances. There were also a number of wealthy carapaces who had sided with the right people early on, earning them safety and millions of boons. Tonight was no different. The parking lot was packed as well dressed people from all species acted as valets. 

Karkat pulled a sweatshirt on and put the hood up. He was still rather short, but months of working out had made him look slightly intimidating. Coupled with a signature frown, he passed   
as a bodyguard. He followed Ms. Paint out of the car, glaring at anyone who looked at them.

Spades brought them directly to the basement. Boxcars was already there with Rufioh and Tavros. “Spades, we got here as fast as we could. I couldn’t believe it. How could anyone hurt such a sweet kid?” Boxcars clenched his giant fists.

“Yeah, yeah,” Spades said. He looked around. A few other carapaces were aimlessly chatting and wandering. “What’s the word on Droog?”

“He’ll get here soon enough.”

Karkat moved toward Tavros and Rufioh. “What’s up?”

“Nothing,” Rufioh said. They glanced at Tavros, who looked more nervous than usual. “Hey, it’s alright.”

“I know, I know,” Tavros replied. “I just want this to stop.”

“We all do,” Karkat said. “We’re gonna do something soon.”

“What?”

Karkat shrugged. “Something useful. Kill the Condesce?”

Rufioh and Tavros looked at each other. “Only a Peixes can kill the Condesce.”

“I’d bet my fucking life on Meenah being willing to kill the Condesce.”

The door opened, and a few more carapaces filed in. “I think we should think of s-something else,” Tavros said. “We have an army ready to help us, right?”

Karkat shrugged. “We’ll talk about this with everyone. Roxy still has an encrypted chat room set up, right?”

“Yeah.”

“Good. Tomorrow we’ll talk.”

Droog came in with Aradia. “Where’s Damara?” Rufioh asked.

“We don’t know. She went out with some of her friends and won’t pick up her phone. She knows to come here if we aren’t home, though.”

“Do you think she’s safe?” Karkat asked.

 

“Honestly, she’s probably stoned out of her mind.” They all nodded in agreement. At one point or another, Damara had crashed outside someone’s house on a trip, usually Rufioh’s. Once or twice, Karkat had helped Kankri carry her inside so she could at least have a couch.

“Why are your friends so stupid?” Karkat had asked.

Kankri shrugged. “I’d love to know. And, honestly, I’m not fond of Damara recently, but I do care about her, and I’d like to keep her as safe as I can.” Karkat held back his comments that Damara had always been a few cards short of a deck and tossed Kankri a blanket for her. 

Rufioh snapped his fingers in front of Karkat’s eyes. “Earth to Karkat.”

“Huh?”

“Spades is getting ready to talk.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> See? Told y'all I'd be updating more. Ideally, this fanfiction will be finished by the end of this month. I hope you enjoyed and thank you for reading! Until next time~


	6. Chapter 5: The Game Plan

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! I hope you enjoyed this chapter, thank you for reading, and I'll be back in a few days! Until next time~

Spades took a lighter out and lit a cigarette in absolute silence. Nobody was brave enough to speak, and everyone stared when one unlucky carapace coughed. Finally, after a drag, Spades said, “We’re in a tight spot.” Karkat caught his eye and he repeated himself. “We’re in a tight fucking spot.”

Droog stood beside him. “Get on with it, Spades.”

Spades elbowed him in the side. “Don’t tell me how to do my job, dickmunch.” A few humorless laughs came from the audience, Tavros and Rufioh included. “You all know about the Protectors of Alternia. They’ve been an increasing threat ever since the Condesce came into power. We’ve all been affected by curfews, not to the same extent as trolls, but enough to make everything a pain in the ass. 

“Some of you might not know about the White Queen’s army. It’s a group of white and black carapaces from around the world working under the White Queen’s orders. Slowly, they’ve been gathering and meeting here. They’re endgame is to take the Condesce down and put someone else in power. We’ve been keeping limited contact with each other, and we will be assisting each other when the time comes to attack.

“We also have another group helping us, and they lost two members a few weeks ago. My kid, Karkat,” a few carapaces turned to look at him, and he did his best to hide behind his friends, “and his friends have been resisting the Condesce from before she was in office. Cronus Ampora and Kankri Vantas were both fleeing the Condesce after killing PA members, and were murdered for it.”

Someone nudged Karkat, and he resisted the urge to knock them over. It was a show of solidarity no matter how hurt he was by any mention of Kankri. 

“It’s a group involving humans and trolls. They also bring the assistance of the Dolorosa, the Disciple, Spinneret Mindfang, and Neophyte Redglare, who is on our side working undercover for the Condesce, much like the Psionic before his death. They also have four prominent members in the PA who are trying to sway less adamant members in our favor.”

Someone whistled. Droog glared into the crowd. “It’s hope, but just barely. We’ve known this information for months and things have only gotten worse. To say we’re facing an uphill battle is a severe understatement.”

“We have to work twice as hard and be ten times as diligent,” Boxcars said. “It’s easy to remove ourselves from the problem. Trolls hate humans and lowbloods, not carapaces. But trolls enslaved every species they came across in their hayday, and carapaces have a history of being weak.”

“Exactly,” Spades said, taking over. “So, here’s the plan.

“Me, Droog, Boxcars, and Deuce will be splitting the Crew into four parts, controlling each section. Anyone with Deuce will continue normal Crew activities to allow for income. Boxcars’ group will be training to prepare in the event we are attacked. Droog’s group will work to get members of the White Queen’s army here safely and catch them up to speed on everything. My group will be the smallest, and only a few carapaces who I trust will be trusted to know what we are doing. The most I will say is it will involve working with the White Queen and Karkat.”

Nobody said anything, although murmurs were prevalent. Karkat was just as curious as they were to know what Spades was going to do. Aradia, Tavros, and Rufioh turned to face him with inquisitive stares. Karkat shrugged, unable to answer, though he was sure he’d find out soon enough. 

“That’s it, morons,” Spades said, and everyone started talking at full volume. 

“What has Redglare been up to?” Aradia asked.

“According to Terezi, keeping her head low. Everyone believes Cronus attacked her, and they both said that’s what happened, so she’s in the clear. But if she did something else so soon after, it’d look suspicious,” Karkat explained.

“And we expect her to help us?” Rufioh asked.

“Sounds better if we say she is,” Karkat replied. 

The door opened and Deuce rushed in, Sollux nowhere to be seen. “I’m sorry I’m late! I left Sollux with Mituna but I didn’t want to leave Mituna and-”

“Clubs, we took care of it,” Droog said. “Get back to Mituna and make sure he’s safe.”

Karkat refocused on his small group. “Has anyone heard from Feferi, Eridan, Horuss, or Equius lately?”

“Only from Equius,” Aradia replied. “Mr. Zahhak was never as intense as the other parents, so I think him and Horuss are the only PA kids that still have phones. He didn’t talk about anything important though, he was just chatting.”

“Same with Horuss. Except I think he was flirting,” Rufioh frowned, running his hand through his mohawk. 

“I haven’t heard from Gamzee in a while,” Tavros said. A light bronze blush dusted his cheeks, and everyone unanimously chose to ignore it. 

“I did. He saved my ass.” Karkat launched into an explanation of the Blacklist. Tavros and Rufioh looked to each other, then at Aradia, all realizing they were in the same position Karkat had been in for most of his life.

“What are we going to do?” Tavros asked. “S-Someone’s gonna catch one of us eventually, right?”

Karkat rolled his eyes. “You have nice robotic legs, maybe work on finding out to run the fuck away.”

Tavros looked to the floor, and Rufioh wrapped his arm over his shoulders. “That still leaves everyone else,” Aradia said. “Two nobodies managed to knock you out-”

“I got away on my own, thanks!”

“And,” Aradia pushed on, “there’s bound to be more experienced trolls coming for us. We should end this soon.” She glanced at them all. “We just have to figure out how to do that.”

Then, together, they all said, “Fuck.”

 

Once everyone dispersed from the casino, Spades took Ms. Paint and Karkat to one of the rooms. Droog and Aradia took another (Damara had yet to make an appearance), and Boxcars, Tavros, and Rufioh took another. Deuce and Sollux would take the last room in a few days, once Mituna was cleared to leave the hospital.

Karkat, Aradia, and Tavros were all on their chatroom, talking to the others who were still awake at two in the morning.

CG: OH MY GOD. ROSE AND DAVE. GO THE FUCK TO SLEEP.  
TG: no  
TG: and before you ask why, fuck you thats why  
TT: I am in complete agreement with Dave. No, we shan’t go to bed.  
TG: yeah exactly we shantnt i must refuseth  
AA: wait kanaya what are you still doing up? i thought you liked sleep  
GA: No Reason  
TG: they were being gay together or something   
TG: i just know roxy was talking about how cute and gay her baby sister was being in the human group chat  
TT: Oh my god why do we have a human group chat. Why do you guys talk about my love life in the human group chat?  
TT: Wait, why am I not in the human group chat?  
TG: we invited you but you muted us because youre a jerk  
TT: Ah. Nevermind, then.  
CG: GET ON TRACK JEGUS FUCK.  
AT: oH RELAX, kARKAT, wE’RE JUST ENJOYING, gETTING TO TALK TO EACH OTHER,  
AT: wE’VE ALL BEEN SO, sTRESSED LATELY, iT’S NICE TO JUST TALK,  
TG: it really is  
TG: dirk just stopped treating me like a fragile baby and i really dont want to deal with serious stuff again  
TT: We have to face what’s happening sooner or later. We’re going to be the first to go once the Condesce gets what she wants.  
GA: If  
GA: She Still Has A Long Way To Go If She Wants To Turn This World Into Alternia  
CG: AND A SURPRISINGLY SHORT WAY TO GO IF SHE WANTS TO WIPE OUT HUMANS.  
AA: wait we never talked about that! 0o0  
TG: 0o0?  
TG: what the fuck is that aradia  
AA: its a surprised face  
AA: you have the big eyes and the mouth opened in surprise  
CG: WHO GIVES A SHIT?   
CG: AND I JUST SAID THAT TO GET YOUR ATTENTION.  
CG: WE HAVE TO GET THE WORD OUT THAT WE’RE MOVING THINGS ALONG. THE CONDESCE CREATED A BLACKLIST TO WIPE OUT ANY RELATIVES OF THE SIGNLESS OR ANYONE WHO IS CONNECTED TO HIS SUPPORTERS.  
GA: Oh Dear  
GA: So All Of Us  
CG: PRETTY MUCH.  
CG: SPADES IS GOING TO FILL ME IN ON HOW HE WANTS TO WORK WITH US, SO BE PREPARED. WE NEED TO FILL GAMZEE, EQUIUS, HORUSS, ERIDAN, AND FEFERI IN.  
AA: what about kurloz?  
CG: I’M NOT SURE THAT WE SHOULD TRUST HIM. HE GIVES ME A BAD FEELING.  
TG: boneman gives all of us a bad feeling stop being a pussy  
TG: although i totally agree  
TT: He never seemed stable, but I always tried to avoid him.  
AT: hIM AND rUFIOH WERE, aLWAYS REALLY CLOSE, i CAN ASK WHAT HE THINKS,  
CG: YEAH GO DO THAT. WHERE EVEN IS HE?  
AT: tRYING TO GET, uH, a HOLD OF dAMARA, hE’S PRETTY MUCH THE, oNLY ONE SHE’LL RESPOND TO,  
AA: gog i hate her  
TG: damn aradia tell it how it is  
AA: its frustrating!  
AA: fuck me for hoping youre okay i guess! Ugh!  
GA: Damara Has Always Been Like This Aradia  
GA: You Shouldnt Pay Any Mind To It  
GA: She Has A Decent Enough Survival Instinct And Should Be Able To Stay Alive Without Your Help  
TG: (hey rose trolls are fucking weird)  
TT: (I couldn’t agree more.)  
TG: (you arent allowed to agree youre dating a troll)  
TT: (Shut up, I’m not dating a troll.)  
GA: (Wait Youre Not Dating A Troll)  
GA: (I Mustve Been Very Confused About Our Relationship)  
TG: (oh shit you made kanaya use sarcasm oh *shit*)  
AA: (aw this is cute ^u^)  
CG: (HEY GUYS GUESS WHAT I HATE YOU ALL.)  
TG: (karkat your negativity is not allowed in this secret meeting of love)  
carcinoGeneticist [CG] is now offline!

Karkat dropped his phone on his bed and rubbed his forehead. That was absolutely pointless. He might as well have asked the wall to pass on his information. 

Then someone knocked on the door, lightly. “Karkat? I talked to Rufioh, but you went offline.”

Karkat opened the door. “Sorry, they were annoying.”

Tavros only grinned. “Rufioh told me a bit about Kurloz. Do you wanna hear about it right now, or, uh, should I wait until morning?”

Karkat sat down. “Right now would be fan-fucking-tastic.”


	7. Chapter 6: Instincts Tend to Trump All

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, I'm back! I hope you enjoyed this chapter! If you have any critiques at all, please leave them! I want to improve my writing. Until next time~

“Kurloz hasn’t talked to Rufioh in a couple of days, probably because of the-”

“The whole blacklist bullshit,” Karkat interrupted. “Gamzee told me about it earlier. The Grand Highblood prefers Kurloz because he won’t talk, and there’s no way in hell he’s not keeping Kurloz on a tight leash.”

A little unnerved, Tavros said, “R-right. Anyway, Rufioh’s pretty sure Kurloz is still seeing Meulin somehow. If we wanna get in touch with him, we should talk to her.”

Exactly as Karkat thought. “Thanks, Tavros. I’ll keep everyone posted.” Tavros nodded and left. There was no way Karkat would get permission to leave the casino. The chance of him being kidnapped, attacked, or killed when outside was too high for Spades to consider it, and, if he somehow managed to avoid any of those dangers, he could potentially lead someone back to the casino, giving a clear indicator of where the top members of the Midnight Crew were.

Of course, if he wasn’t alone, and disguised, he might stand a much better chance. 

carcinoGeneticist [CG] began pestering uranianUmbra [UU]!  
CG: CALLIOPE.  
UU: hello karkat! what can i do for yoU?  
UU: if yoU need one of the lalondes, i can grab them for yoU.  
CG: ACTUALLY, I NEED YOUR HELP. YOU STILL LIKE TO COSPLAY AS A TROLL, RIGHT?  
UU: well, it’s not really cosplay. i *am* a troll, jUst a severely mUtated one. it’s how i try to look normal.   
UU: like makeUp for victims of serioUs bUrns.  
CG: HOLY FUUCK I REALLY COULDN’T GIVE LESS OF A SHIT. I’M AT ROCK BOTTOM FOR SHITS TO GIVE, CALLIE. NO MORE SHITS. ALL GONE. ALERT THE PRESSES. EVERYONE WAS WRONG, MY SHITS ARE NOT IN LIMITLESS SUPPLY.  
UU: Uh.  
UU: what?  
CG: DO YOU DRESS UP AS A TROLL STILL?  
CG: IS THAT STILL A THING THAT’S HAPPENING?  
UU: yes! why do yoU ask?   
CG: I NEED A DISGUISE. MY HAIR IS EASY ENOUGH TO TAKE CARE OF, BUT IT’S MY HORNS I’M WORRIED ABOUT. DO YOU HAVE ANY FAKE HORNS YOU’RE NOT USING?  
UU: i have a few pairs i don’t need anymore. bUt i don’t have horns, so i’m not sUre if they’ll fit on yoU………..

Karkat felt his nubby horns.

CG: IT WON’T BE A PROBLEM.   
UU: awesome! i’ll keep them safe for yoU. do yoU need me to send someone to yoUr hoUse with them, or are yoU going to come get them?  
CG: NEITHER. BUT I’M GOING TO SEND EQUIUS TO GET THEM, I THINK. HE’S THE BIG BUFF GUY WHO SWEATS A LOT AND KIND OF LOOKS LIKE HE’S NEVER HAD A SOCIAL INTERACTION IN HIS LIFE.   
UU: erm……….. i’m not *qUite* sUre i know who that is, bUt i’m sUre roxy or rose will recognize him.  
CG: SWEET. THANKS, CALLIOPE.  
UU: no problem!  
carcinoGeneticist [CG] ceased pestering uranianUmbra [UU]!

With a basic disguise covered, Karkat moved to his next target.

carcinoGeneticist [CG] began pestering centaursTesticle [CT]  
CG: HEY, ON A SCALE OF ONE TO TEN, HOW LIKELY ARE YOU ABLE TO HELP ME?  
CT: D--> I’d say a definite seven  
CT: D--> Why, what did you do  
CG: WOULD YOU BELIEVE IT IF I SAID ABSOLUTELY NOTHING? THE WORLD JUST WANTED FUCK ME RIGHT IN THE ASS, NO LUBE OR ANYTHING, AND IT FUCKING BLOWS.  
CT: D--> Dear god, karkat  
CT: D--> I know I need to be more la% with swearing and whatnot, but can you refrain from such vivid descriptions  
CG: I’LL TRY MY BEST.  
CG: ANYWAY, I’M SURE YOU’VE HEARD OF THE BLACKLIST BY NOW.  
CT: D--> Is ro%y still protecting our pesterchums  
CG: YEAH.  
CT: D--> Yes, i’ve heard of the blacklist  
CT: D--> Who’d you hear it from  
CG: VRISKA.  
CT: D--> I’m always scared to learn how much she knows  
CG: WELCOME TO THE FUCKING CLUB. LOOK, THE MIDNIGHT CREW TOOK SOME PRECAUTIONS BECAUSE OF THE BLACKLIST, AND I MAY OR MAY NOT BE STUCK IN THE BASEMENT OF THEIR CASINO WITH SPADES, DROOG, AND BOXCARS.  
CG: THE THING IS, I HAVE TO GET OUT AND FIND KURLOZ. I KNOW I MIGHT GET HURT IF I DO IT ALONE, SO I NEED HELP.  
CT: D--> You definitely would be safer with me, but, if the wrong people saw me with the last vantas, we might be in trouble  
CG: CALLIOPE IS LENDING ME A SET OF FAKE HORNS, AND I’LL CUT MY HAIR FOR A MAKESHIFT DISGUISE. HOPEFULLY I’M AVERAGE ENOUGH TO NOT DRAW ATTENTION.  
CT: D--> Have your eyes started changing color yet  
CG: NOT YET.  
CT: D--> Alright, we can make this work  
CG: AWESOME. I NEED YOU TO GET THE HORNS FROM CALLIOPE. SHE’S BEEN STAYING WITH THE LALONDES.  
CT: D--> Alright, i’ll get them tomorrow afternoon  
CT: D--> I’ll send you a message when i get to the casino tomorrow  
CG: AWESOME. THANKS, EQUIUS.  
CT: D--> My pleasure, karkat  
CT: D--> How do you plan on finding Kurloz  
CT: D--> I don’t even know where he is  
CG: I’M GONNA TALK TO MEULIN ABOUT IT.  
CT: D--> Alright  
CT: D--> I’ll see you tomorrow  
CG: SEE YOU THEN.   
carcinoGeneticist [CG] ceased pestering centaursTesticle [CT]

Karkat glanced at the time. Three a.m.? When the fuck did that happen? He sighed and rubbed his eyes. He hadn’t had trouble falling asleep lately. It had been increasingly easy to pass out no matter when it was or where he was even if he was becoming more and more tired. This was the first time he saw this side of midnight in a while.

He sat on his bed and looked around. The rooms were made with office dividers, and were decidedly barren. Spades and Ms. Paint were both sleeping in the other bed. He had no clue how he would get out without anyone noticing, but at least he knew how he was going to stay safe. Maybe he could have Aradia cover for him. She was the only one who could tell a convincing lie.

 

Karkat woke up at eleven to a buzzing phone. Groggily, he checked it. Equius had gotten the horns and was waiting outside and, jeez Karkat, how long did it take you to get ready? It’s been half an hour!

He shot out of bed and checked his clothes. Perfectly casual, nothing super fancy or obnoxiously obvious. He hadn’t done anything with his hair and probably wouldn’t be able to, but he would live. 

Outside, everyone was talking casually, as though they weren’t in hiding. He made his way to Aradia. “Morning, sleeping beauty!” she said brightly.

“Hey, completely out of curiosity, how good are your psionic capabilities?”

“Uh, I can move things, and that’s about it,” Aradia replied.

“I can still only control animals,” Tavros butted in. 

Karkat glared at him for a moment before softening, realizing this could be far more useful. “Carapaces are basically advanced crabs, right?”

Tavros and Aradia looked at each other. “I guess?” Tavros replied.

“Perfect. I need a huge favor and please don’t make me fucking grovel for it, but can you try to control every carapace here long enough for me to escape.” He ignored Tavros’s shocked expression and turned to Aradia. “And then I need you to cover for me. Say I’m sleeping in your room so nobody barges in, and keep everyone out of there.”

“Karkat, what the fuck?” Karkat turned around, finding himself face to face with Rufioh. 

Unable to reply, he instead heard Tavros say, “I really don’t think I can do that, Karkat.”

“Do what?” Tavros told Rufioh what Karkat had just asked of him, and Rufioh said, “Yeah, there’s no way you’ll be able to do that on your own.”

“On his own?” Karkat repeated.

“Yeah. I’ll help, though. But you better fill us in on what you’re up to, dude,” Rufioh replied with a grin.

“Of course. I owe you guys.” Rufioh sat next to Tavros, grabbed his hand, and they both closed their eyes. Karkat looked around at the carapaces. Within moments, they all had a slightly woozy look on their faces. Without further hesitation, Karkat rushed out of the room, upstairs, and out of the casino. Equius was waiting outside in his car. 

“Thank you for being punctual.”

“Haha, you’re an ass,” Karkat replied. He sat in the passenger’s seat and asked, “Do you have the horns?

Equius handed him a bag, and Karkat pulled out a headband with two long, looping horns attached. Karkat grimaced. “Personally, I think you’ll look lovely in them.”

“Haha, fuck you,” Karkat scowled, putting the headband on. They didn’t fit over his horns, but he was able to put them just behind and cover his nubs with his hair. “How do I look?”

“Like Karkat, but with bigger horns,” Equius replied honestly. As Karkat muttered swears under his breath, Equius continued, “Just keep your head down. Hopefully anyone looking for you will be looking for the horns.”

Karkat rummaged around the car, ignoring Equius’s glare, and pulled out a miraculously unbroken pair of sunglasses. He put them on and smiled. “Bam. The disguise had increased tenfold in efficiency.”

“And I thought Nepeta was the roleplay nerd,” Equius said. 

“Who do you think she played with before she met you?” Karkat asked. “We’ve known each other since we were grubs.”

“Do you think the Disciple is your genetic mother?” 

Karkat shrugged. “Who fucking knows. It doesn’t really matter. We can’t integrate the human family into troll culture. Most trolls are too violent for that.”

“Blueblood trolls can only be around other bluebloods at young ages. It’s not safe until we can control our strength.”

Karkat glanced at the steering wheel, which was dented in areas perfectly resembling Equius’s hands, and said, “Thank gog you can control your strength now.”

“I know.”

They had nothing else to say after that, and remained quiet until Equius pulled up in front of the Leijon household. A knot had formed in Karkat’s stomach and, as they approached the front door, he said, “Something’s off.”

“I agree.” Equius knocked. Nobody answered. 

“Think they went somewhere?”

“Nepeta didn’t tell me if she did, and she usually keeps me updated with all the hemocaste tension.” 

“We should break in.”

“No need to.” Equius reached into a potted plant and pulled a key out of the dirt. He brushed it off, then unlocked the door. 

“Nepeta? Meulin?” Karkat called.

“Ms. Leijon?” Equius called. “We’re sorry to intrude!”

A howl came from upstairs, then a crash. Karkat and Equius ran up the stairs. At the top of the steps lay Nepeta, a puddle of olive blood surrounding her head. Karkat hushed Equius, who let out a short cry, and knelt beside her. Gently, he turned her so she was facing upwards. “It’s from her nose. I think it’s broken, but she should be fine.”

“I’ll take her downstairs.” 

“No,” Karkat said. “Not yet. We need to find Meulin and the Disciple. We’ll get Nepeta when we leave.” 

Equius didn’t look particularly happy with the plan, but grief kept him timid. Crashes and cries of pain were coming from one of the rooms. Karkat when to open it and Equius bared his fists. 

Inside, Meulin was attacking the Disciple, who was bleeding heavily. Neither her fangs or claws were exposed; she was only trying to stop her daughter, whose eyes were bright purple. “Meulin, stop!” Equius shouted. The Disciple looked at them, standing in the doorway, and Meulin took advantage. She pushed her claws into her chest, and the Disciple roared in pain.

Equius ran forward and grabbed Meulin’s arms, holding them tight behind her back, and Karkat grabbed the Disciple. “Karkat?”

“Don’t worry,” he said. “We’re going to get you to a hospital. You’ll be okay.” His voice was cracked and had raised a few octaves. He wasn’t even convincing himself.

Meulin screamed, and Equius shook her. This only encouraged her to shout louder, more extreme profanities. “What do I do?”

“Knock her out?”

“I don’t want to hurt her!”

“I think she already hurt Nepeta.” That was enough for Equius, who managed to get Meulin in a sleeper hold. As her screams lulled into nothing, Karkat turned his attention to the Disciple. “Try to get up, you can lean on me.”

“It’s not worth it,” she gasped.

Equius laid Meulin on the ground and came to the Disciple’s side. “Stay with us,” he said, lifting her off the ground. “Try to get Nepeta.”

Karkat nodded and went to his friend as Equius brought the Disciple down to his car. “Nepeta?” he asked, shaking her shoulders. She didn’t respond, but she was still breathing fine, so he grabbed her by the waist and lifted her over his shoulder. With all of his strength, he brought her down to the car. The Disciple was laying across the backseat. Karkat put Nepeta in the passenger’s seat. “What are we going to do about Meulin?”

“I don’t know. If you stay with her, I can take the Disciple to a hospital.”

“Do you think she’ll freak out again?”

“That wasn’t a freak out, that was something else. You saw her eyes, someone was controlling her.”

“Yeah.” 

After a few moments, realization dawned on them, and, at the same time, they said, “Kurloz!”


	8. Chapter 7: Where the Bones Are Buried

Equius wasted no time in bringing the Disciple and Nepeta to a hospital. Karkat found some blankets and towels to bind Meulin’s arms and legs together. Although they had reached the conclusion that Kurloz had forced Meulin to do this, they couldn’t act out on it; not yet, at least. They decided to deal with the Leijons first and foremost. 

Even though Meulin hadn’t been in control of her actions, Karkat didn’t want to risk her waking up still under Kurloz’s control. Equius would be back to help Karkat deal with Meulin. She didn’t seem injured. If Karkat could guess, she had surprised Nepeta, attacking her before she could respond, and had taken advantage of a loving mother

He had managed to lift Meulin and put her on her bed. He brought up a chair from downstairs so he could keep an eye on her. Every few minutes, Aradia would text him to let him know that covering for him was getting to be a real pain in the ass. His only response was to let her know they’d be having at least one more guest.

That left the Maryams. The Dolorosa was the only rebel left, although Karkat was sure Kanaya and Porrim were far more resistant to any form of psionic hypnosis. 

After almost an hour had passed, Meulin began to stir. She groaned and tried to move with little success. He moved to her side and shook her awake. “Meulin?” he asked, careful to make his mouth movements clear.

“Karkat?” she asked, her voice hoarse and her pronunciation off, as though she had a mouthful of marbles. “Why am I tied up?”

“What do you remember?”

“I don’t know,” she replied. She tugged at the blanket tied around her arms. “Can you undo these?”

Karkat untied her arms but didn’t do the same for her legs. “You went berserk. You’re eyes were purple, and Equius and I walked in on you attacking your mom.”

“Oh my gog.”

“Yeah. Are you hurt?”

“No. But my head feels like shit.”

“I bet. Who did this to you?”

She hesitated, then said, “I don’t know.”

“Bullshit you don’t know. Your eyes were purple, and the color of the psionic power is the same as the blood of the psionic.”

“It wasn’t Kurloz,” she said.

“What other psionic violet bloods do we know?”

Meulin refused to look at him and instead took it upon herself to undo her legs. Karkat went back to his phone and told Equius that she had woken up in control of herself. Nepeta had also woken up and was unnaturally quiet. There was no word on the Disciple, though she was hospitalized.

Karkat looked at Meulin, who was still looking away. He couldn’t communicate with her if he wanted to until she decided to look at him once more. 

He updated the Nitrams and Aradia on where he was and what had happened. Aradia ignored everything and made it explicitly clear that she would not be able to keep up the facade he was there for much longer.

He couldn’t text Gamzee, and he had no idea where Kurloz was. Even if he did, he wouldn’t go after him. Either the Grand Highblood was controlling her, or Kurloz had pulled a troll Benedict Arnold.

Finally, Equius called him. “What’s up?”

“Is Meulin talking?”

“She’s not even fucking listening.” Karkat tried out every swear word that came to mind. Meulin didn’t flinch. 

“The Disciple died.”

“Oh fuck.”

“Yeah.” For a minute, neither of them said anything. Then Karkat heard a small scuffle on the other end.

“Hey.”

“Nepeta?”

“It wasn’t Meulin. I mean, it was, but it wasn’t her. You didn’t see it, Karkat, it was painful. It… It hurt her. She was s-shaking and screaming and-”

Then there was silence, though Karkat thought he picked up a cry of pain. He waited, glancing at Meulin, who was still looking away. “Karkat? It’s me,” Equius said.

“What happened?”

“Nepeta broke down,” he replied. “I calmed her down. We’re on our way to pick you up.”

“Alright. Nepeta and Meulin can come back to the casino with me.” He hung up and got close to Meulin’s face, forcing her to look at him. “You’re coming to the Midnight Crew hideout with me and Nepeta.”

She didn’t respond. Karkat sighed and decided to look through the house. Food wasn’t an issue, but weapons never hurt to grab. Nepeta kept the fucking coolest pair of weird Wolverine-esque claws in her room, and he found a similar pair in Meulin’s. The Disciple didn’t keep anything, though she did have multiple nail files (presumably to keep her claws vicious as shit). 

Meulin watched him with a detached sort of interest as he walked through her house. “Just fucking rat on the clown,” he muttered angrily.

Equius arrived as Karkat was putting the claws in a bag. “Nepeta’s in the car,” he said.

“Good.” He motioned towards Meulin. “She’s not really… doing anything.”

“I’ll carry her down.” 

“Should we tell her?”

Equius frowned. “I… I don’t know. Does she have a moirail?”

“Jegus, I don’t fucking know. She has an abusive matesprit.”

“Well, that’s exactly the opposite of what we need. We’ll leave this to Nepeta.”

The rest of their trip was quiet. Meulin put up no resistance to being put in the backseat, next to Nepeta. Karkat didn’t know what to say or how to say it; after two dead families, he thought he’d know how to offer comfort or kind words. His mind was completely blank. 

Equius brought them back to the casino. Karkat’s phone was buzzing with messages from Aradia telling him Spades had found out he left and was wearing his vocal cords thin to tell anyone who would listen how he would indeed stab Karkat in the thigh.

“Do you need help bringing them in?” Equius asked once they pulled up to the casino.

“I’ve got them,” he replied. “Thanks, Equius. I’m sorry shit hit the fan so gogdamn fast.”

“If we didn’t get them, all of them would be…”

Understanding exactly what he wasn’t saying, Karkat said, “I know. I’ll talk to you later.”

Nepeta got out of the car with a wave. Karkat followed suit. Meulin didn’t. “Hey, uh, can you give me a hand?”

She nodded and opened the car door. She signed something to Meulin, who signed something back, who was met with a signed response from Nepeta. Begrudgingly, Meulin got out of the car.

“What’d you say?”

Nepeta shrugged. “What I needed to.” Karkat was struck with the reminder that, out of the typical aggressiveness grubs display, Nepeta was the only one that consistently hunted and killed rats. He’d bet his life’s savings (all five dollars of it) that nothing had changed. 

Karkat led them to the elevator and nodded to the carapaces, getting them downstairs. Once they reached the bottom level, Karkat heard crashing and banging from behind the doors. He grimaced. “Hey, Karkat?”

“Yeah?”

“What’s that?”

“A tantrum,” he sighed. The doors slid open, and, sure enough, Spades was flipping one of the tables and Ms. Paint and Droog were both rubbing their foreheads in exasperation.

“‘Sup, fuckers,” Karkat said, walking in.

“Look it’s Karkat totally not dead and/or injured exactly as we promised!” Aradia said, throwing her arms into the air. 

Spades slowly turned to face him. “Kid. Boy. You piece of shit. I have a few fucking words for you.”

“The Disciple is dead.” He felt Nepeta tense up behind him. 

“What?” Rufioh asked. Karkat didn’t repeat himself. His statement rippled through the room. 

“How did it happen?” Droog asked.

“What the fuck did you do?” Spades asked.

Karkat began to explain everything. Nepeta took Meulin by the hand and led her away, and Tavros brought them to his room. Once Karkat mentioned how Meulin killed the Disciple, he was interrupted.

“Meulin adored her mom,” Rufioh said, looking down.

“You fucking brought a fucking murderer to your fucking hideout? What if her boyfriend controls her again, dipshit?” Spades yelled.

“She was used, and she’s the only lead on Kurloz we have,” Karkat said. Meulin was always nice. She was the one who drew pictures for him and his friends on their birthdays and was always the nicest babysitter.

“She can’t stay.”

“She can’t leave.”

“Karkat?” Spades and Karkat both turned to look at Nepeta. “Meulin wants to talk to you.”

Karkat looked at Spades, who glared and said, “This isn’t over.” He followed Nepeta into the Nitram-Boxcars room. Meulin was sprawled out on a bed, tears on her cheeks.

“What’s up?” he asked Nepeta. 

She pointed at Meulin, who said, “I know where Kurloz is.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, I hope you enjoyed! If you have any comments or criticisms at all, feel free to tell me. Until next time~


	9. Chapter 8: Lovely Bones and Empty Thrones

Despite her two weeks not being up, her mother told Feferi that she was free to come and go whenever she liked, so long as she didn’t stay gone for more than a full day. Feferi nodded, too distracted by her hand. There was not so much as a mark left behind.

She couldn’t kill Mr. Nitram. She couldn’t kill anyone, for that matter, but Tavros looked up to his father and loved him with all his heart. To kill him would be a terrible betrayal of years of friendship. But what else could she do? 

Confused and tired, she went onto the group chat for advice.

cuttlefishCuller [CC] joined FRUITY RUMPUS ***HOL3 F4CTORY!  
CC: I need )(elp…  
AG: Whats 8ugging you  
GA: At This Point It Might Be Easier To Just Ask What Went Wrong  
CC: I just joined t)(e Protectors of Alternia.  
AG: In what world did that sound like a good idea to you????????  
AG: We already have enough people who are in deep shit with a gang!!!!!!!!  
GA: Well To Be Fair Calliope Is No Longer In Immediate Trouble  
GA: Though I Do Agree That It Was A Very Reckless Idea  
CC: I know, I know.  
CC: It gets worse. I )(ave to do a task to prove my loyalty, and it involves me murdering Tavros’s dad.  
AG: Well you cant do that  
AG: My super awesome and totally dangerous mom has been chasing Nitram Senior’s ass for yeeeeeeeears  
GA: And Tavros Would Be Devastated  
CC: I know t)(at! But I can’t back out.  
GA: You Cant Proceed Either  
CC: Do you guys )(ave any suggestions?   
CC: At best maybe I can use some sea troll swagger or somet)(ing to make everyone trust me.  
AG: No, thats not a good enough plan  
AG: You need something thats sure to work  
AG: Have you asked the fish dicks a8out how they dealth with whatever task they got  
CC: No, but t)(ey N-EV-ER talk to me anymore.  
GA: Now That All Three Of You Are In Protectors Of Alternia Im Sure You Will Allowed To Meet  
AG: Right on fussyfangs  
GA: Please Dont  
CC: I’ll try to talk to t)(em. But w)(at if t)(ey can’t )(elp me?  
AG: May8e you might have to kill him  
AG: Shit  
GA: No We Wont Let It Come To That  
GA: If We Are Being Honest The Summoner Is Likely To Die Soon  
GA: It Took The Protectors Of Alternia Three Years To Kill The Signless And He Was An Important Political Figure  
GA: With A Criminal It Will Only Take A Few Months And It Will Be Justified  
CC: But I need to be responsible.   
AG: You need to 8e in the right time in the right place then  
AG: Ill 8estow some of my legendary luck to you  
CC: T)(anks Vriska.  
GA: Talk To Eridan  
GA: He Will Know More About This Than Either Of Us Will  
CC: T)(ank you too, Kanaya.   
CC: I’m going to go see )(im now. )(opefully )(e’s )(ome.  
cuttlefishCuller [CC] left FRUITY RUMPUS ***HOL3 F4CTORY!

She glanced out of the window. It was around noon. The ceremony from early in the morning weighed heavily on her mind. She still felt as though her hand was sliced open. She felt dirty, unclean just from being surrounded by those hateful people. And Mr. Zahhak… Yes, they were a traditional family, but he always treated everyone so fairly. Even Karkat. 

She saw Cronus wander outside, his hands shoved deep in the pockets of his leather jacket. Though the whole greaser look was still in tact, his hair wasn’t slicked back. Instead, it fell into his eyes. A cigarette was lodged between his lips, smoke streaming out of the end. His fins weren’t their normal majestic, regal purple. The color was faded.

Feferi rushed out to meet him. He was sitting on the curb, diligently focusing on some small bug. “Cronus!”

He looked up, startled. “Oh. Fef.” 

Before he could say anything else, Feferi lunged into a hug. He fell back onto the grass. “You shellfish jerk!”

“What’d I do?” he asked, beneath mounds of hair. 

“Thinking you could do this without any help! Why is every Ampora like this?”

“Haven’t you only ever met two Amporas?”

“Yes and they are both shellfish dicks who think they’re being noble when really they’re being morons who put themselves through hell!” Feferi got up and dusted some dirt from her clothes. Cronus sat up and, seeing that his cigarette had been put out on the grass, scowled and lot another.

“Hey, I tried to help my brother. The ungrateful shit,” Cronus said. “I am an adult, princess. I am capable of making my own choices. Eridan is not.”

“Things are getting serious now,” Feferi sighed. “Did Dualscar force him to join?”

Cronus held a finger to his lips. “Old man, hearing like a fuckin bat,” he whispered. “No. Idiot does stuff on his own. What about you, little lady?”

She grimaced. “I’ve made some pretty dumb choices too,” she said, under her breath. 

Cronus gave her a wry smile. “Yeah, well, I heard it from the old man. Congratulations on giving your never ending loyalty to the cause!” he said in a near shout. His eyes were sad, full of pity.

“Thanks,” she said. “That’s actually what I needed to talk about.”

“You’re initiation assignment?” Cronus asked. Feferi nodded, and he said, “Technically, I’m not supposed to help you. Not only does it test your loyalty, but your capability as a member. But you’re special, so I’ll bend the rules. Perks of knowing the coolest, sexiest troll alive.” Feferi rolled her eyes, and Cronus continued. “What do you need to do?”

“Kill Mr. Nitram.”

“Rufioh’s hot dad?”

“The one and only,” Feferi groaned.

Cronus hummed a short tune as his eyes flicked upwards. He inhaled his cigarette and puffed out a stream of smoke, away from Feferi. “That’s a shit ton more extreme than what I had to do.”

“What was yours?”

“Just had to rob a car place. Owned by some lowbloods who ‘thought’ they were tough shit.” Feferi gave him a questioning stare. “It was a successful car place, so they were making some money. Stole a car, higher ups pawned it off, and voila, we made a quick buck.”

“Why’d I get stuck with a tough assignment.” 

“Well, I have a theory, but I’m not too sure. There are two main rules for you to be accepted. You have to be a highblood, and you have to be recommended. I think the person who recommends you chooses the task. Your mom would be the type to make everyone dangerous as shit, but my dad always thought I was a weakling, so I got stuck with a low level job.”

“What did Eridan have to do?”

Cronus shrugged. “Don’t know. Never got the chance to ask him. He seemed really different afterwards, though. Quiet. Less violent, believe it or not. Check with him, he likes you more.”

“Alright. Any idea where I can find him?”

“He’s been leaving a lot,” Cronus said. “Maybe he’s with Vriska? You can check there. Say hey to Aranea for me.”

“Alright. Sea you later, Cronus.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, I hope you enjoyed! Thank you for reading and feel free to leave any comments or criticism. Until next time!


	10. Chapter 9: Sometimes, Stupid Is the Best Solution

Karkat ended up blacking out immediately after standing up. The pain was searing white hot, and no amount of adrenaline could dowse it. Nepeta had to carry him outside (and she assured him he would never hear the end of it). Rufioh flew him directly to Harley-English residence, where their psycho grandpa had more than enough medical supplies to make a some diy cast bullshit. Meenah brought Kurloz and Nepeta to the Serket’s, where they at least had temporary protection from the Condesce.

Dirk was sitting next to Karkat’s temporary bed when he awoke. “Awesome. You weren’t out too long.”

“Jesus fuck!” Karkat shouted. “This fucking hurts!”

“I can’t help you out more than a bottle of advil.” Dirk nodded to the drawer next to the bed, and Karkat grabbed the bottle. “No more than four, and only for today.”

“I didn’t know you were a doctor,” Karkat scowled, counting out four pills.

“I’d give you something stronger if I was. Mr. Harley helped us set the bone, and then it was just a matter of wrapping your arm with a splint. Be careful.”

“Thanks.” There wasn’t water, so Karkat swallowed the pills dry with a wince. “Where’s everyone?”

“Don’t know. Rufioh dropped you off and bounced right after. This has something to do with the blacklist, right?”

“How do you- wait, nevermind. Dave. Duh, I’m an idiot. Yeah, that, and we kind of attacked the GHB.”

“The GHB?”

“The one and only.”

“Holy shit Karkat. You have balls of fucking steel.”

“Thanks. Listen, I have to get back to Spades before he breaks the rest of my bones.”

Dirk held up his hand. “Hold on. You were out for an hour or so. You need to check the news.” He handed Karkat his phone, already opened to a recent article. Karkat squinted as he scrolled past the title, POSSIBLE GANG VIOLENCE LEADS TO BOMBED HOUSEHOLD, FIVE KILLED. 

“This is my address,” Karkat whispered. 

Dirk’s ears were sharp as ever as he said, “Yeah. The five dead haven’t been identified. At first, everyone was pretty sure it was you, Ms. Paint, Spades, and whoever was unlucky enough to be walking by.”

“Spades moved everyone important from the crew to a safehouse,” Karkat replied. “Holy shit.”

The door opened, and Jade came in. “Oh, cool, you’re up. Jake went to make sure Dave, Roxy, and Rose are okay.”

“Right, because Roxy needs protection,” Dirk scoffed.

“Alright, it was mostly for Dave,” Jade shrugged. She turned her attention to Karkat and asked, “How’s the arm.”

“Shitty.”

“Nice! It matches the disposition,” Jade laughed, pointing finger guns at Karkat. He laughed. Jade was probably one of the few people who could insult you without you feeling bad about it. 

“Anyway, do you want to head back to the safehouse?” Dirk asked.

Yes. He should definitely be going back there, and hopefully breaking an arm would teach him to stay put. “No. The Condesce blew up my house. She’s gonna try doing the same to everyone else. We need to make sure everyone gets to a safe spot.”

“The Serkets are safe. And we’re safe here,” Dirk said.

“And Ms. Lalonde has a crapton of security at her house. We could move over there if we needed to, she’s pretty secluded,” Jade said.

That would work. Darkleer would protect his sons with his life. The Dolorosa was a force to be reckoned with. Feferi and Eridan were deeply entrenched in the PA, so they were safe. The same went for Redglare. “I think that covers it,” Karkat said. “Hey, can I borrow your phone? I need to text Sollux.”

“Take it,” Dirk said. “That’s one of my extras. I’ve got some stuff to take care of. Take care, dude.” 

“I’m going to stay put. You need some company, I think,” Jade said with a smile.

Karkat shifted as much as his arm would allow. “I need morphine or something.”

“Sorry, no intense opioids here.” Karkat groaned. “You’ll be fine.”

“I hate this. I can’t believe I was stupid enough to save fucking Kurloz.”

“Yeah, what exactly happened? And why wouldn’t you save Kurloz?”

Karkat explained everything about the Disciple and Meulin’s complete and total brainwashing. How her eyes shone purple. How green blood splattered everything. How he would’ve left Kurloz to the mercy of his father had Nepeta not been with him. 

At some point, Jade was sitting next to him, letting him rest his head on her lap. “I’m sorry.”

He thought about the Disciple, and how she had loved his father, how she had always loved him and Kankri, how Meulin and Nepeta adored her, how she was a good troll and a great mother. 

His face was wet again. He wiped his tears. “Yeah.”

“What are you going to do?” He looked at her. “Come on, I’ve known you since we were thirteen. I know you’re going to do something impulsive and stupid.”

“I’m not going to do something impulsive and stupid.” Jade gave him a smug look. “What? I’m not! I don’t want to be impulsive and stupid anymore! I don’t want anyone else to get hurt!”

His seriousness got through to Jade, and her face changed immediately. “I’m sorry. Karkat, I get it. My best friend was missing for months. And what happened to Kankri-”

“Please get out.”

“Karkat-”

“Get the fuck out!” He stared her down, refusing to give into her apologetic eyes, until she resigned and left. He huffed and turned, trying to fall back asleep. And he turned again. And again.

Fuck it. He still had to text Sollux.

 

Sollux woke everyone up and passed on Spades’s messages to Karkat. Thirteen ‘Fuck you’s and eight ‘you motherfucker’s spammed his inbox until Sollux stole the phone back. Rufioh had Kurloz at the Serket house and was asking him everything he could think to; why did he do it, did he remember anything, why did the GHB flip? Kurloz kept his mouth shut (per the norm), but refused to sign anything.

They were stuck. Karkat promised that he was safe and eventually stopped pestering Sollux.

The sun had set and the pain in Karkat’s arm had subsided. It hadn’t disappeared, and he loathed to think of how it would feel on a normal dosage of advil, but for now, he was content, and he was finally starting to feel tired.

His mind wandered to what Jade had said, and he thought about what he would’ve done were he still thirteen and four steps behind everyone else. Probably kill the Condesce.

But the PA was a hydra. If he killed her, someone would take her place, and they’d be in the same exact spot. 

Except, the PA was a group bound by an ancient set of rules, and he had two fuchsia bloods on his side. If Meenah or Feferi killed the Condesce, they’d be bound by honor to Alternia to follow their orders,

He jumped out of bed, ignored his aching arm, and shouted, “Jade! I have a stupid idea!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey y'all I'm back with another chapter. I hope you enjoyed! Also, if any of you want to ask me anything about this story, find me on tumblr @unprofessionalartist. Until next time~


	11. Chapter 10: My Immortal... Right?

“Hey hey hey. What the fuck do you mean, you’re going to kill the Condesce?”

Jade has immediately called Dave, who brought Rose and John to the phone with him. Karkat massaged his temple with his good arm and said, “No, Dave. It wouldn’t matter if I killed the Condesce. I doubt I could, actually. There’s probably weird voodoo bullshit in my blood preventing it, probably. We need to get Feferi or Meenah to do it.”

“Probably Meenah,” Rose said. There was a moment of silence on the other end before she continued, “What? I love Feferi, she’s a delight, and that’s kind of the problem. We need pure, chaotic rage.”

“You’re so fucking gay,” Dave said. Rose chuckled.

“Okay, before Rose has a wet dream, let’s be serious,” John said. “I get the idea, but what’s the plan? Is there an official queen troll deathmatch, or?”

“Fuck if I know. The Condesce has been, well, Condesce, for like a buttfuck of years. It’s not really in living memory, and she destroyed all records of what happened with the last Condesce.”

“Seems corrupt,” Jade said.

“It was probably like a gajillion years ago. She was the empress, she was allowed to censor shit and cull people. That’s how Alternia was,” Karkat explained.

“Like Russia,” Jade said, nodding wisely. 

“What’s leftover from Alternia?” Rose asked. “What media can we look through?”

“Nothing useful, unless anyone wants to watch the Thresh Prince of Bel-Air with me.”

“No thanks,” Dave replied. 

“Was there an Alternian dark web? Anything that would’ve been hidden from the Empress?”

Karkat exhaled and closed his eyes. “I wouldn’t know. Ask Sollux maybe, or Equius. I bet he’s a big enough history nerd to know about all of that bullshit.”

“Alright, so we find out how to kill a fuschia-blood, get Meenah, and then take down the PA!” John said. “How hard could it be?”

“I love you all dearly, but we are so royally fucked,” Dave sighed.

 

Sollux had no idea about an Alternian dark web, but he scoured as best he could for one. Equius didn’t know either, but he promised to read up on Alternian tradition as best he could to get an inkling of an idea on how a Condesce’s ascension would work. 

Karkat was stuck with Jade, Dirk, and Jake. He was stuck in a constant flurry of furry cartoons, My Little Hoofbeast, and every single one of the fifteen movies in the Avatar series. Blue horse-people haunted his dreams.

“I need to get out of here,” he whined.

“No chance. Sorry,” Jade replied. “It’s way too dangerous, and you know that. The PA is looking for you, especially now that you tried to kill the GHB.”

Karkat groaned. “I can’t stay here. They’ll find me no matter what.”

“There’s the pessimist I missed! You don’t know that. This house is probably one of the safest you could find. My pops would have landmines in the front yard if he could.” Karkat stared at her, mouth agape, and she asked, “What?” like she hadn’t just said the weirdest thing of all time.

“Nothing, don’t worry about it,” Karkat huffed. “Look, it’s not fair I’m just stuck here. I put everyone in danger by starting this whole mess.”

“You didn’t start this. You made sure we knew what was going on,” Jade said. “That’s good.”

Karkat didn’t reply. He fiddled with his arm until Jade swatted his hand away. “Ow!”

“Cut it out, you’ll make it hurt more.”

“You’ll make it hurt more,” he mocked, barely intelligible. Jade gently swatted at his hair this time, and he ducked in fake pain. 

“Hey, how have you been taking everything?”

“Not now, Jade.”

“If it’s not now, it’s never. I know you, Karkat.”

“I don’t want to talk about it.” He put his pillow over his head and turned away from Jade.

“Fine. Fine fine fine.” The door closed, and Karkat sighed. 

Karkat didn’t realize he fell asleep until someone woke him up. A large weight shifted the mattress down, and Karkat nearly jumped up from underneath the comforter. Dave Strider himself was sitting on the bed. He took of his sunglasses. “Damn. Do you ever turn the light on in here?”

“You can if you want,” he replied, voice dry from sleep. 

Dave shook his head. “Easier on the eyes.”

“I’m not going to talk to you either.”

“I’m not going to make you, stupid.” He leaned back, across Karkat’s legs. “Jade wants me too, but I get it, man.”

“Okay. Cool.” Karkat relaxed and laid back. “Cool.”

“You want to get out of here? I’m sure we could manage it. You might need a haircut, though.”

“I’d probably have to file down my horns.”

Dave shrugged. “There’s plenty of mutants in the country. The Condesce is after you, but you blend in too well.”

“I look like my dad.”

“Yeah, you do, but your dad was kind of an average looking guy. You look like a depressed twelve year old who might be the second cousin of him. Might. You got way thinner, your hair grew out, and you look really pathetic with the arm.”

“You flatter me.”

Dave winked. “Anything for you, sweetheart. I’ll try to talk Dirk into getting you out of here. I think we should see Meenah.”

“Yeah. Is Kurloz still there? We need to make sure he’s on our side.”

“Hell if I know. We’ll find out tomorrow though, okay? You can borrow some of my clothes. Oh shit, you might look good for once.”

Karkat swung his pillow at Dave, who flinched away. Dave didn’t say anything. Neither did Karkat. They simply laid there, in the comfortable silence of the dark.

Then, not realizing what he was saying until it was out of his mouth, Karkat asked, “Do you ever think about your brother?”

“I think about Dirk every day of my life-”

“Dave-”

“I mean, he is so fucking cool, how the hell would I be able to get him out of my head, you know?”

“Dave-”

“I have so much to live up to. Honestly, Dirk shaped me into the man I am today. The man who loves My Little Hoofbeast, the man who can outrap anyone, the man who has sick ass shades-”

“Dave! That’s not what I meant.”

For a moment, Dave said nothing. And then, “I know.”

Karkat swallowed. “Forget it. I’m sorry.”

Dave sighed. “I think about him everyday. He was such a shitty person. I mean, he got himself, and us, in that situation. But… I don’t know, man. He raised me? I loved him. I love him. I don’t know.” He sighed again and put his sunglasses back on. “My brother has always been in my life. So living without him has been entirely new. I’m missing something important everyday.”

“I get that.”

Dave let out a shaky breath. “I don’t want to talk anymore.”

“Me neither. Thanks.”

“Anytime, bro.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh hoho, look who posted twice in two days. I'm treating you, one person who reads this story (love you boo). I hope you enjoyed, and I'll try to keep the updates coming. Maybe I can finish this before September! Until next time~


	12. Chapter 11: When Roads Converge

The morning started with an argument between Dave and Dirk. It hardly resembled any screaming match Karkat had ever been in since Dirk seemed to adamantly refuse to yell. “We can’t keep him locked up here. He’s a troll, not an animal.”

“Let’s say he isn’t recognized,” Dirk replied. “He doesn’t have a proper cast. What if someone notices? What if the wrong person notices? The GHB definitely told the PA that Karkat’s arm is broken. I guarantee you they already searched through medical records of every single hospital within this city.”

“Maybe he’s just a homeless dude who can’t afford healthcare. Go, capitalism!” 

“I’m being serious, Dave.”

“So am I. We’re going to see Vriska, and we’re going to talk Meenah into killing her mom, and Karkat’s gonna be perfectly fine.”

Dirk stared at Dave. Dave stared back. Jake, Jade, and Karkat shared a moment of understanding that the Striders were both stubborn enough to sit there for hours, waiting for the other to back down. “We’ve got snacks?” Jake asked, and the three of them went into the kitchen to raid the pantry.

Twenty minutes later, Karkat had successfully eaten two part sized bags of Cheetos. The Striders were still in a deadlock. Finally, Dave said, “What good does staying put do, Dirk?”

Dirk’s stony face cracked. “Fine. But I’m coming with you.”

Dave smirked. “Let’s go, then.”

 

Aranea gasped when she opened the door. “Karkat!”

“I know I look like shit, can we please come in?” Karkat groaned. Aranea nodded and stepped aside, nodding at Dave and Dirk. “Is Meenah here?”

“Always,” Aranea sighed. “Meenah, we’ve got company!”

“Coming, dear,” Meenah’s mocking voice called back, and Aranea pinched the bridge of her nose, muttering something about how much she loved Meenah in a voice that conveyed very little patience.

Meenah did nothing to hide her shock towards Karkat’s appearance. “Holy fuck, do you need a hospital, Vantas?”

“Probably,” Dave replied. “I bet his arm bone is healing in all the wrong ways. Your arm is probably gonna be crooked forever, man.”

“Awesome,” Karkat glared. “Look, Meenah, what do you know about how the Condesce became the Condesce?”

“Fuck if I know,” Meenah snorted. “Do you think she would ever reveal her weaknesses? Ever? No way. She never told us about the Empress before her. For all we know, she founded Alternia.”

“She technically did. If you want to get into specifics about the government of a planet and how well that ties into a nation, she may as well have started Alternia. The government before, though still a monarchy, had entirely different laws, economies, and societal structures-”

Meenah held her hand up to Aranea’s face. “Babe, I love you, but I will literally punch you in the bulge if you don’t shut up about your history bullshit. You can tell me about this later, kay?”

Aranea glared, and Karkat was terrified that a Serket-concocted murder plot was working itself out in her mind. “Stop flirting already,” Karkat interrupted.

“Would you guys know where to begin looking?” Dirk asked. “Dave and I have no experience with this stuff. Karkat’s been stuck with the worst people to ask.”

“Mom keeps a bunch of Alternian artifacts in her study. Artifacts of the illegal kind,” Aranea answered.

“Illegal like, it’s from Alternia where it was supposed to be burned, or illegal like she downloaded some sketchy Alternian adult entertainment stuff without paying?” 

“Karkat, gross,” Dave said, nudging him in the side. 

“Illegal like, stolen from the Condesce,” Aranea grinned. 

Mindfang’s study wasn’t anything special. It was cramped, with a tiny desk and bookshelves and maps taking up most of the wall space. “I expected there to be more… Decorations? Treasure? Pirate-y stuff?” Dave said, looking around. 

“She’s practical,” Aranea said. “She can put her treasures anywhere, but here, she has to dedicate room for crunching numbers and keeping track of records.”

“A life of piracy to a casino owner. Not exactly depressing, but it feels sad,” Dirk said, ghosting his hands over some of the books. 

“Where do we even start?” Karkat asked. 

“I’ll take the desk, and you guys can work through the books. Most of it’s gonna be business stuff, so you probably won’t be doing much reading,” Aranea said. 

“Wait, why in the fresh fuck aren’t you helping with the books? Don’t you love this shit?” Karkat asked.

“I already called the desk, no take backs,” Aranea replied in a singsong voice. 

Karkat huffed, but grabbed a book and opened it up. “City health codes.” He placed it back on the shelf and grabbed another. “Slot machine manual.” He grabbed another. “Fiscal records: 3011.” He placed it on the shelf and groaned.

Holy shit, this was going to take a while. 

Nobody else was having much luck. Mindfang’s desk was a mess, and Aranea’s approach seemed to be organizing the scattered papers into piles before actually examining them in depth. Meenah had a growing pile of books next to her. 

On his eight book of trivial bullshit, Karkat asked, “Hey, will Mindfang be alright with us going through her shit?”

“When we tell her it’s all to kill the Condesce? Absolutely.”

“Alright, cool.” Karkat glanced over at Dave, who was actually reading one of the books. “Whatcha got there, Dave?”

“Huh? Oh, uh, I think it’s a story about Mindfang and the Summoner.” He turned a page. “They mentioned the Condesce, but I don’t know if it’s what we need.”

“The Condesce wouldn’t keep a legend about someone who rebelled against her,” Dirk said. “Keep reading, though. It might have something useful.” It didn’t. Dave dropped it as soon as he realized it was more akin to a porno than a legend.

An hour passed. Karkat found a book about lusii that he skimmed, but it didn’t amount to anything. Meenah found a book of the Signless’s speeches, which she tossed to Karkat. Aranea found jewels and golden figures being used as paperweights, but everything else in the desk seemed to be paperwork. Dirk had abandoned the books entirely to look through scrolls, which tended to be exquisite paintings of Mindfang, historical trolls, and pirate ships. Then, finally, “Hey guys, check this out.”

Dirk turned the scroll in his hand to face everyone. It was one image painted in bright colors, most likely troll blood. The Condesce, far smaller than she was now, was shown forcing one end of a double trident through the body of another fuschia blood, whose face was conveying horrific pain, wrenched into agony and sorrow and, most of all, betrayal. “There’s something on the back, but it’s in Alternian, I think,” Dirk said.

“I can translate it.” Dirk tilted the back of the scroll so he and Aranea could both read it. She stared at it for a minute before saying, “Okay. Alright, I think I understand.” She cleared her throat and read, “Mother had done away with the Alternian tradition of culling the Empress to gain control. She planned on passing rule down to my eldest sister- Meenah, you have an aunt?” Meenah shrugged, and Aranea continued. “She planned on passing rule down to my eldest sister, but my Alternian heritage was strong and true, and I challenged her in combat for rule. She resisted. It only made things easier. My sisters and brothers- Wait, I thought fuschia bloods were exclusively female? That’s fascinating. What history did the Condesce erase? And why?”

“Get on with it,” Karkat interrupted, annoyed. 

“Right, sorry. My sisters and brothers were outraged; some for my forceful taking of the throne, some for acting out on their deepest wishes. I culled all of them to protect myself. I intend to forever control Alternia.”

“That it?” Karkat asked.

“Yeah.”

 

“That was barely fucking anything.”

“Not exactly,” Dirk said. “We know what we can do to play it safe. Challenge her to combat, and use a double trident. I figure you don’t have to kill Feferi, though.” He let out a chuckle as everyone stared at him. “Sorry. Bad joke.”

“Should we use a special double trident, though?” Dave asked. “Does Alternian metal have magical properties or something?”

“I’m not sure,” Aranea replied. “But there might be something important about killing the Empress with something born from her own land.”

“The only double tridents me and Fef own were made on this shitty planet. But I betcha we can find an Alternian one in my Mom’s house.”

 

“We still have to get into her house, and then corner her for a challenge without getting killed,” Dirk said.

Karkat mulled it over. Feferi couldn’t steal the trident without putting herself in danger. And how would they corner the Condesce? It’d have to only be around the PA, as he doubted the general non-highblooded troll populace would accept it as a norm. With curfews, it would be especially dangerous to bring any humans or mutants, which would limit who they could send and what they could do.

He rubbed his forehead and frowned. Everyone was silent with the exception of Dave, who was drumming his fingers on a bookshelf. This was bullshit. This was fucking bullshit. What the fuck was he supposed to do? Why the fuck did he leave the fucking hideout, where Spades was. Spades, who was actually capable of making a fucking decision.

Spades.

Spades, who was organizing his own special mission against the Condesce.

Who could probably help Meenah.

“We need to talk to Spades.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oo I'm doing good. So, I actually have almost finished writing this story, which is crazy because this series has been a work in progress for... two years? Whack. I hope you enjoyed, and thank you so much for reading. Until next time~


	13. Chapter 12: Pure Parental Outrage

“I’m not gonna call Spades,” Dave said. Karkat gave him a look, and he asked, “What? Do you think he’s going to be calm and understanding that his only son left the safety of… the safehouse.”

“A good point with a weak finish,” Dirk added.

“I could talk to him,” Aranea said. 

“It doesn’t matter,” Karkat said. “He ditched his phone. I’ll ask Sollux to get the message through.”

Of course, an hour later, when Vriska had joined them as soon as she got home, Sollux replied with, “2pade2 2aiid he wont lii2ten unle22 you talk two hiim. 2orry.”

“Fuck,” Karkat muttered. 

carcinoGeneticist [CG] began trolling twinArmageddons [TA]!  
CG: GIVE ME TO SPADES, SOLLUX.  
TA: He already did you stupid fuck.  
CG: HEY SPADES.  
TA: Why the fuck did you run off.  
TA: Out of EVERY FUCKING ONE here you’re the one in the most danger.  
TA: You stupid son of a bitch.   
CG: CAN WE TALK ABOUT SOMETHING IMPORTANT PLEASE? WE HAVE A PLAN ON HOW TO KILL THE CONDESCE.  
CG: WHAT ARE YOU AND THE WHITE QUEEN PLANNING ON DOING?  
TA: You lost your right to know.  
CG: WE NEED YOUR HELP. MEENAH CAN DO IT, BUT WE NEED PEOPLE BACKING US.  
CG: SPADES.  
CG: SPADES REPLY TO ME.  
TA: hey he gave me the phone back. he2 pii22ed.  
CG: I CAN TELL. DO YOU HAVE ANY CLUE WHAT THE WHITE QUEEN IS DOING?  
TA: ii thiink they're goiing two try two kiill the conde2ce. iit2 liike he 2peciial op2 force.  
CG: THEY’D BE ABLE TO HELP US, THEN.  
TA: yeah maybe you guy2 can talk about iit when he calm2 down.  
CG: OH FUCK WAIT YOU KNOW WHO COULD HELP? KURLOZ. SOLLUX I’VE GOTTA GO.  
carcinoGeneticist [CG] ceased trolling twinArmageddons [TA]!

“Guys, where has Kurloz been staying?” Karkat asked.

“He’s been crashing in the guest room,” Vriska replied. 

“I need to talk to him.”

“Do you know sign language?” Aranea asked. Karkat gave a noncommittal grunt. It was impossible to not know any, given that he had known Kurloz for a year now. He was also scared shitless of Kurloz and tried to avoid him at all costs, so his knowledge wasn’t the best.

“I’ll translate,” Meenah said. She led Karkat to the guest room, where Kurloz was lying, asleep on his bed. “Wake up!” she shouted, and Kurloz jumped up, fear in his eyes, makeup smeared on his face. 

“Do you know anything about how we could kill the Condesce?” Karkat asked.

Kurloz began signing, and Meenah began to translate. “Father never spoke of it often, but when he did, one thing was the same. A fuschia blood can only be killed with their own weapon.” She looked at Karkat, then back at Kurloz. “That it?” He nodded.

“Awesome,” Karkat said, not really caring to think of the logistical nightmare stealing the Condesce’s weapon would be. “What’s her plan with the blacklist?” Kurloz didn’t move, and Karkat glared at him. “What’s her plan now that you killed the Disciple?”

Meenah moved in front of Karkat. “Speak up, Skeletor. Or do you wanna find out what happens when we throw your bass out on the streets?”

Kurloz looked between them, then slowly moved his hands. His pointer finger on his right hand pointed straight out while the rest of his fingers were closed in. His left hand was held flat. Then, he moved his right hand across underneath his left hand. “What does that mean?” Karkat asked.

“Kill,” Meenah replied. Kurloz nodded. 

“Do you know how?” Karkat asked. Kurloz shook his head.

Karkat looked to Meenah, who looked back at Kurloz. “Alright. Thanks, beach. Fix your make up before dinner, okay?”

They left his room and Karkat sighed. “That was fucking useless.”

“Tell me about it,” Meenah said, rolling her eyes. “Look, man, you better get Spades to help us, or we’re fucked.”

He sighed again, although this time is was more like a groan. “I’ll work on it.”

Then, before they could return to their friends, they heard the front door open.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hm. So. Long time no see. I'm a college student now? I'm tired always but I found a bit of free time today to bring you an update long overdue (thank my body for giving me a cold and forcing me to skip soccer practice). Really, thank you for being so patient. I hope you enjoyed. Until next time~


	14. Chapter 13: To Kick Ass or Be Ass Kicked?

Meenah and Karkat shared a quick look before running back to their friends. They had all jumped to their feet and were staring at a young seadweller. “The fuck are you?” Vriska asked.

The seablood didn’t reply, but took out a knife and charged at Karkat. In a flash, Dirk had grabbed the troll, holding each of his arms behind his back. “Dave, help,” he grunted as the troll struggled. 

Dave, however, was glued to the floor, trembling. Vriska moved toward him instead, and punched the troll across his face, knocking him out. “You alright, cool kid?” she asked. Karkat walked to Dave, resting his hand on his shoulder. 

Dirk was searching the seadweller, who was now strewn haphazardly on the floor. “It looks like he only had the knife. Which is stupid.”

“We might wanna get Karkat out of here,” Meenah said. 

“Was he trying to kill me?” Karkat asked. He knew it was a dumb question. It made him feel better to ask it.

“Probably just hurt you. If I know my mother, she wants to kill you herself,” Meenah replied. Karkat felt his stomach drop. He was unarmed with one working arm.

“Dirk, let’s go back to Mr. Harley’s house,” Karkat said. He shook Dave gently until he nodded and walked toward the door.

“Text us when you get there,” Meenah said. 

They didn’t even get out the door. Dirk threw his arm out in front of Dave and Karkat, silently pointing out the window. Two more trolls, a giant blueblood and another seadweller, were waiting, seemingly annoyed. “Fuck,” Karkat whispered. 

“Dave, hide in the guest room if you can’t handle it, okay?” Dirk said. He nodded and looked to Aranea, who led him away. 

“What should we do?” Karkat asked. 

“You need to hide,” Dirk said. “We got lucky the last guy didn’t have a gun. One of them might.”

“Karkat’s not a pussy, he could handle it,” Vriska said. She looked at Karkat, eyebrows raised in a challenging taunt. This was a tactic. It’d be easier to fight them four on two, even if he was somewhat crippled. Vriska was taking charge the only way she knew how: manipulation.

“I can handle this,” Karkat said, turning his attention to Dirk.

“Don’t be a dumbass, kid,” Meenah said. “You’re more of a hassle than a help.”

“He’s taking a while, and it’s quiet in there.” This drew their attention back to the window. The seaweller outside was nodding at the other troll, who continued, “Let’s go in.”

“Karkat, hide, now,” Dirk hissed. Karkat’s expression hardened as he knelt down beside the unconscious troll, grabbing his knife. Dirk glared at him before pressing himself against the wall, where the opened door would hide him. Meenah and Vriska had hidden behind the couch. Karkat stayed next to the troll, more out of stubbornness than anything else. 

The door opened, and the blueblood was indeed armed with a pistol, and she took the lead. She saw Karkat first. Then her eyes fell to the seadweller. Looking back to Karkat, she snarled and aimed before Dirk kicked her arm away. He punched her throat, taking full advantage of her surprise and loss of balance. It was short-lived, though, as she picked him up by his neck. 

The second seadweller had pushed past his partner to get into the house. Seeing Meenah and Vriska, who were holding a kitchen knife and a fireplace poker respectively, he held up his bowie knife and ignored Karkat completely. 

Dirk was kicking at the blueblood’s torso, but she was a foot and a half taller than him and holding him at arm’s length away. She chuckled and threw him against the wall, and Karkat leapt up and stabbed her between her shoulder blades. She howled in pain and Karkat ducked to avoid her arm as she swung around to hit him. 

“Help,” he yelped as he jumped away from the fucking blueblood Xena. Vriska was swinging the poker wildly at the seadweller, who was put on the defensive as he dipped and leapt out of the way. Meenah, also trying to avoid Vriska’s erratic offense, ran toward the blueblood, diving at her waist. The both fell to the ground, though it was becoming increasingly clear to Karkat that, despite being the closest to her size, Meenah would be no match for her. Breathing heavily, Karkat’s mind raced for a solution before it landed on one.

He ran to the guest room, skidding slightly as he stopped at the door. Inside, Dave was sitting cross-legged against the wall, as Kurloz was looking down at the ground. “Kurloz,” Karkat started, slightly winded. “There’s a huge fucking troll in there, and I need you to kick her ass.”

Kurloz nodded, and Karkat moved out of the way to let him through. Karkat looked to Dave as Kurloz almost eagerly went to face his foe. “I think I’ll stay here with you,” Karkat said as a blood-curdling scream rang through the house. Karkat winced as a loud snap followed.

Then Kurloz came back, covered in blue and purple blood.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hm. Um. Been a while my guys, huh? College. Yup. Hope you enjoyed this update. Thank you for reading, hopefully I'll see you again soon. Until next time~


	15. Chapter 14: The Clown Comes With Us

Dirk was shaking, and Vriska had an oddly vacant look in her eyes. The only one who seemed unaffected was Meenah. “Where’s Aranea?” she asked when Karkat came to check on them.

When he shrugged, Vriska got up and said, “I’ll find her,” her voice a bit distracted. She stepped over the bodies- oh god, they were still on the floor, nearly unrecognizable, horns cracked and face smashed in-

“Stop looking,” Meenah snapped, and Karkat’s attention was pulled away. “It’ll just make it worse. Dirk, you should go find your brother or somefin.” Dirk nodded, but stayed put, and Meenah rolled her eyes, blowing a bubble with her gum. “I thought everyone was supposed to be tough. I didn’t think you were the only one ever in a fight.” She nudged Karkat with her elbow.

“I think people handle stuff differently,” Karkat replied, a bit annoyed. He didn’t get the chance to blow up at her, though, because Aranea made her return.

“I just got off the phone with Mo- holy fuck.” She was looking down at the bodies. “I… I heard something, I knew it was going to look rough, but… Guys, what did you do?”

“It was Kurloz,” Dirk said, voice barely above a whisper. 

Aranea looked over to him, but Dirk hadn’t moved. She swallowed hard and stepped over the bodies to sit on Meenah’s lap. A bit quieter this time, she said, “I called Mom. She’s gonna be back soon, and we’re gonna sail to a different part of the city for a bit. We’ll probably keep moving everyday.”

“I can’t stay,” Karkat said. “I have to get to Spades and find out how we can get Meenah to the Condesce.”

“Or you can stay on the move and search for her without worrying who might try to kill you next,” Aranea said, almost pleadingly. 

“I couldn’t do that to you guys. If I stay, I’m painting a target on this house.”

“We painted one willingly.”

Meenah wrapped her arms around Aranea’s waist. “Relax, babe,” she muttered. “He’s right. Me and him gotta bounce. We have to see if Spades can get us face to face with the Condesce.”

“I’m coming with you guys,” Dirk said. He finally moved, sitting up to face them. “I’m leaving Dave here. He hasn’t been in the best shape after, well… Look, I’m worried he might seize up in a fight again. If he’s always moving, he’s never in danger.”

“We’ve got the room,” Aranea said. She was frowning, and she had a tight grip on Meenah’s arm. “Mom wants Kurloz out anyway.”

“We’ll take him,” Karkat said, thinking of the bodies below him while carefully avoiding looking at them. 

“Yeah, great,” Dirk said, running a hand through his hair. “That’s a great plan.”

“He saved your ass,” Karkat snapped. Dirk didn’t reply, and Karkat would’ve goaded his witty remark out of him if Meenah hadn’t glared at him. “Let’s just head out.”

Within five minutes, they were outside, Meenah holding her double trident in one hand and Kurloz’s arm in the other. Aranea was keeping Dave occupied until they were out on the water. “Where are we going?” Dirk asked. 

Not back to the Harley household. It was likely they would face a visit from some PA members; it was best to keep away from there lest they justify more capable members to follow. They probably wouldn’t be able to get into the safehouse. That went for any of his friends’ houses. His house was blown up, likely nothing more than rubble in ash that was still being cleaned up.

And then he remembered how everything started.

 

“This place is a shit hole,” Meenah deadpanned. Dirk’s face was neutral, as it tended to be, but Kurloz cracked a lazy smile.

“Don’t laugh, clown fuck,” Karkat said. “I’ve seen your house.” However, while the Makara household was covered in painted handprints and dirty furniture, Doc Scratch’s old home was barren. After his murder was reported, it was stripped for evidence. Nobody had bought the house due to the high profile of the murder. 

“So, we’re safe here?” Dirk asked. He ran a finger along the wall, leaving a thin trail free of dust. He wiped his hand on his pants. “I’m guessing the utilities aren’t on?”

“I don’t know,” Karkat admitted. “It’s for sale, but there hasn’t been much luck. Would they keep stuff on?”

Meenah flicked the light switch. The light turned on, and she grinned. “Good. We don’t have to worry about water.”

“We need to worry about food, though,” Dirk said. “I’m the only one that can safely get anywhere, and even then I’d have to abide by curfews. Plus, I don’t have cash, and stealing would be risky if I get caught.”

“You wouldn’t get caught,” Meenah said. “Isn’t your whole thing the coolkid ninja?” Dirk shrugged.

“We can’t stay here forever,” Karkat said. “I need to talk to Spades. Then we have to put whatever his plans are in motion before I get us all killed.”

Meenah nodded. “I’ll try to get Eridan and Meenah on the line. Having people on the inside ready to help would be best.”

“Better get the Zahhaks too, then,” Dirk said. “Plus, you and me need weapons, Karkat. My swords are still with Jake, and do you have anything anywhere?”

He shook his head. “Only with Spades. I’ll make do.”

“Hey, where are we going to sleep?” Meenah asked. “There’s no furniture.”

“On the floor, I guess,” Karkat said. “Maybe there’s sheets somewhere?”

There was nothing; not even toilet paper. Dirk, stealing Karkat’s hoodie, ran out to pick some up, along with sopor pills and chips. By the time he came back, he was quite literally running inside. “Curfews earlier and earlier every fucking day,” he muttered. He dropped his goods onto the floor, and Meenah stared at him.

“Did you fucking only get one roll of toilet paper?” 

“Stole it from the bathroom. It was the easiest way to do it. So you guys better ration it.” Meenah huffed, and, though he knew it was necessary, Karkat shared her sentiment. 

They agreed that they should keep the lights off to avoid attracting attention. There was no way to know whether or not the house was being watched. They ate chips in the dark and found separate rooms with separate floors to sleep on.

The next day, Karkat used Dirk’s phone to text Sollux. According to him, Spades was still being an ass, but he would try to eavesdrop and coerce and found out as much as he could. Kurloz had taken to sitting alone in a room, doing absolutely nothing. 

“Should we be worrying about him?” Dirk asked. 

“I don’t even know anymore,” Karkat replied.

It was worse than house arrest. He wasn’t alone, but he had nothing to do. Not even Terezi to randomly drop by with cool updates. Just his nerd best friend telling him about how little Spades was giving away.

And then, for the thousandth time, Ms. Paint saved his ass.

Karkat nearly jumped when the phone rang. Why would Sollux video call him. He picked up and was met with Ms. Paint’s smiling face, which quickly shifted to concern. “Oh god, you got thinner.”

“Don’t worry about it!” he whined. “What’s going on?”

“Sollux has been bugging Spades for days now-”

“I have the stab wound to prove it!” he said off camera, and Karkat grinned.

“Yeah, he was lucky it was a small one. Anyway, you should’ve come right to me, because I know everything about everything, but I will put my feelings aside. Next Friday, him and the White Queen are taking a force of carapaces to kill the Condesce. They want to take control of the PA and disband them.”

“They won’t be able to without Meenah,” Karkat said. “They’re too steeped in tradition. Get Spades to talk to me. We need to work something out. We’re running out of time.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey girls and gays sorry this took so long I've been having big executive dysfunction and college has been killing me but here's a chapter and I love you all. Until next time~


	16. Chapter 15: Then Beg

It took a full day of pleading, apologizing, reasoning, and sweet-talking (on Ms. Paint’s part) to convince Spades to include Karkat in their plan. During this time, Meenah had managed to get some basic stuff about the PA from Feferi, Eridan, Horuss, and Equius regarding which trolls were the biggest threats, which Spades appreciate.

“The White Queen gave us some of her best manpower, and a couple of your friends are offering to help. Rufioh, Nepeta, and Meulin all wanna help us,” Spades said.

“Let them,” Karkat replied. “I’ll talk to everyone else. We need as many people as we can get.”

“Like I need you to tell me that.” Karkat could hear the scowl in his voice. “Keep this shit under wraps, fuckhead. Use Sollux’s server, and if anyone outside of your little gang hears this, it’s your head.”

“Wouldn’t just be mine,” Karkat muttered. He hung up, not having anything else to say.

“You okay?” Meenah asked.

“Peachy.” The White Queen had a certain command of respect among all carapaces, so they could probably match the PA’s numbers if not outnumber them. He knew that, when it came down to it, all of his friends would want to help. It scared and thrilled him all at once. 

Spades told him to stay at the Doc Scratch’s house until they attacked the Condesce. If what he had been hearing from John was true, he didn’t mind it. Curfew was being enforced a half hour before it officially started, and most humans were being harrassed by any highblood they passed. The recent increase of attacks on mutants had skyrocketed in the past week alone, and, apparently, an increasing number of mutant redbloods were being kidnapped.

Being trapped was safer than anything else.

They were all starting to feel wary of Kurloz, though. His mannerisms hadn’t changed, but being stuck with him was starting to take its toll. Karkat also began to think more of the fact that, if Kurloz was capable of mind control, surely his father could do the same.

He shuddered at the thought. If Kurloz snapped, they didn’t stand a chance. 

Dirk was getting more and more nervous about going out to get supplies. Karkat knew it was bad when he noticed; for as close as he was with Dave, things with his brother were weird, and being able to pick up on subtle emotional cues from him probably meant they were intense ones, and he was minutes away from a mental breakdown. 

He wanted to leave. This was worth than the safehouse. This was worse than Kankri leaving. 

It only got worse when a couple trolls attacked the Lalonde house. If it weren’t for Roxy’s weird obsession (although, at this point, it was probably better to describe it as useful) with laser guns, Rose, Roxy, and Calliope would probably be in far worse condition. Calliope moved in with the Harleys and Rose and Roxy went with the Maryams.

This hit Dirk more than anyone. Karkat had always been a bit scared of Rose and a bit judgemental of Roxy, now that he could admit he was an asshole. No doubt he was thinking about Dave, who could be the next target.

“Relax,” Meenah said. “They were midbloods, right? Just a couple guys trying to find Karkat and sell him out.”

“That doesn’t make me feel better,” Karkat replied, annoyed. 

“Me neither,” Dirk said, and Meenah shrugged.

Meenah had taken to swinging her trident around to train. “Do you know what you’re doing?” Karkat asked, sounding ruder than he intended.

“Of course I do,” Meenah scowled. She swung the trident down to face him. “Sorry this shithole wasn’t really made for training.”

He mimicked her in a much quieter, much higher pitched voice. He hated this. 

Days crawled by as they waited to attack the Condesce. Dirk had managed to knick a few knives for him and Karkat, but Karkat was feeling too faint most of the time to practice anything. His arm ached and he was surviving off of snacks and tap water. Dirk seemed a bit more tired than normal, too, and Karkat was wondering whether or not this was going to work.

He felt like most of his life was spent sleeping. The days were getting shorter, and Karkat wondered whether or not he had failed out of school by now.

Then, the day of Spade’s plan, they all woke up to the door slamming open. Karkat jumped up and held his breath as footsteps pounded through the house. “The fuck?” he heard Meenah shout, and then there was a loud thud. The door opened and Karkat was face to face with the Grand Highblood for the second time. His breath caught in his throat and his heart threatened to beat out of his chest, but he swung his good arm at him. The GHB caught it and grinned.

“Want to lose this one, too?” He picked Karkat up and threw him against the wall. Karkat groaned and gripped his broken arm, knowing whatever happened just got one hundred fucking times worse. The GHB walked towards him, and Karkat tried his best to keep is eyes open, but the pain in his arm was searing now, and as he lifted his head, everything went black.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Merry Christmas everyone. Until next time~


	17. Chapter 16: In the Motherfucking Lion's Den

He woke up with a pounding headache and an arm aflame with pain. Taking quick, shallow breaths, he moaned and slowly moved his good arm to lift himself off his bad one, relieving the pain, if only by a bit.

He opened his eyes and looked around. He was in what looked like an office, which was… Strange, to say the least. Aside from his arm definitely being more broken, he was fine. 

He managed to get to his feet, though he had to hold his arm in place, which fucking hurt. He winced as he moved slowly around the room, looking for anything that might be useful. He was screwed. There was nothing. 

His footsteps must’ve alerted someone, as a blueblooded teen opened the door. “C’mon,” he said in a rough voice, and Karkat, not wanting him to grab his bad arm, followed without question. They were in a short hallway, the end of which opened into a common room. The tables had been pushed to the wall and highblooded adults sat around the perimeter of the room.

Dirk, Meenah, and Kurloz were already in the middle of the room, all on their knees with their hands tied behind their backs. Karkat wondered if his partial-cripple status would allow him the privilege of having his hands free, but then the teen grabbed his good wrist and wrapped a thin rope around it, tying it to his broken arm. He hissed and swore under his breath, trying his best to stand still and push this all out of this head.

Once his arms were tied, he was shoved down to the floor. None of them were untouched, though Dirk was the worst looking. His nose was crooked, his face was covered in dried blood, and his sunglasses had been abandoned, exposing orange eyes. His typically gelled hair was stuck up in wild strands. Meenah’s glasses were shattered and her cheek was kind of puffy, but she looked fine otherwise. Kurloz, though physically the best looking out of all of them, was staring vacantly ahead

“I must apologize for this impromptu meeting.” Karkat’s head turned toward the hallway he had just come from. The Condesce, in all her tall, terrifying beauty, was walking toward them, her heels clicking against the floor. “We had to act swiftly on this tip.” As she walked in front of them, Meenah spat bloodied spit onto the Condesce’s shoe. For a second, Karkat wondered if she hadn’t noticed. Then the Condesce spun around and slammed her foot into Meenah’s stomach, leaving her winded and laying on her back.

“These four have been causing a tremendous amount of trouble. Word of Kurloz’s recent defection has certainly spread to you all by now, and I have made it clear that Meenah is a disgrace in every sense of the world. These are all lowbloods, all pathetic humans to me.”

Meenah blew a loud raspberry, and Karkat snorted. The Condesce turned to face her daughter, her eyes narrowed. “Feferi,” she said. 

Feferi stepped forward, her trident in hand. She looked at Meenah solemnly, and for a horrifying moment, Karkat thought that maybe she had been brainwashed into believing all this bullshit. Then she winked.

“What are you waiting for,” the Condesce hissed, and Feferi stepped closed to Meenah, pointing the trident at her. She circled her sister and Karkat was thoroughly impressed. He never would’ve thought Feferi could be intimidating.

With a look to her mother, Feferi swung down, cutting the rope from Meenah’s wrist. “Wanted to take your sweet ass time with that, huh?” Meenah asked, rubbing her wrists and getting to her feet. Chatter was now starting around the room, but was interrupted by the door slamming open. 

“There’s a fuckin’ mob,” a young troll said, out of breath. “There’s a whole fuckin’ mob out there.”

The Condesce was unfazed. “You all know what to do. Dualscar, stay here.” 

Everyone left the room with the exception of two trolls; Dualscar and Eridan. “The fuck are you doing?” Dualscar growled to Eridan, who raised his gun to Dualscar and pulled the trigger. The bullet went through Dualscar’s chest and he fell backward, violet blood pooling around.

“Way to go, Eridan,” Karkat said, and Eridan smiled at him.

“I should’ve known,” the Condesce said. “Feferi, drop your trident.”

“Sure thing, Mom,” she said, handing it to Meenah. Meenah grinned and took an attack pose as Feferi began to untie Kurloz’s ropes.

“Betcha wish you weren’t such a massive cunt now, huh?” Meenah said.

The Condesce was quick as a whip as she grabbed the front of the trident and jerked it to the side, throwing Meenah off her feet and across the room. She walked toward her with the trident at her side. “No. I wish I hadn’t raised an imbecile.”

Then Kurloz dove at her, bringing her to the ground. Feferi was working on Dirk now, and Eridan was approaching the Condesce and Kurloz, who were a tangle of limbs on the ground. “Kurloz, move!” Karkat yelled, and he ducked his head. Eridan fired and hit the Condesce in her shoulder.

“Get help,” Dirk said to Feferi once his wrists were free.

“No way,” she replied. “I stand a better chance than you do. Find Mindfang.” Dirk pursed his lips but didn’t argue, and he ran out the door. “You’ve been in better shape,” she said to Karkat when he winced.

“The arm,” he replied as Meenah got to her feet and picked up the trident. The Condesce got up, too, and grabbed Eridan by the neck. Kurloz threw a punch that she caught, and she flipped his arm upside down. He made a strangled cry which was followed by a snapping sound that Karkat recognized as a bone breaking.

“Eridan!” Feferi cried, and she left Karkat to help him as his face turned blue. She ran towards her mother with something flashing in her hand; as Karkat realized it was a knife, the Condesce had grabbed the blade in her hand, fuschia blood dripping from her hand as she tugged it away. Seeming to move faster than light, she dropped Eridan, grabbed Feferi, and jammed the knife in her throat. 

Karkat closed his eyes but couldn’t keep the scream from coming out of his throat. He wasn’t the only one. Meenah shrieked and Karkat cracked an eye open to see she had started swinging her trident, throwing strategy out the door. Eridan was unconscious and barely breathing. Kurloz was clutching a crooked arm. The Condesce caught the trident and pushed it forward until Meenah was against a wall. She pushed on still, and Meenah howled as it went through her arm and into the wall.

“You were behind this,” the Condesce said, turning to Karkat. 

“I’m not that smart,” Karkat replied, sounding braver than he felt.

“I didn’t get the pleasure of killing your father myself. I didn’t get that with your brother, either. I’ve been waiting for this.”

Karkat grit his teeth and refused to look away. “Good. I’m enjoying the fact that there’s a gloryhole in your shoulder.” Then her hand was around her throat, and he was lifted to his feet. She squeezed, hard enough to make it impossible to breath, hard enough for him to feel like she could shatter every bone that was there.

Trying to keep a straight face, Karkat looked behind her to see Meenah pull the trident from her arm. Letting her injured arm hang limp, she quietly came up behind her mother, and shoved it into her back.

The Condesce gasped and let go of Karkat. He fell to the ground with a shaky breath. The Condesce looked down and poked at the spikes protruding from her chest. “Got you,” Meenah said, and the Condesce fell forward.

Karkat got to his feet and looked down at the Condesce. “Good job.” His voice was hoarse.

“Thanks,” she replied. She sounded empty.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah. So. Hey gamers. Check out my new homestuck story, it's prompt based so y'all can make requests. Hope you enjoyed. Until next time~


	18. Epilogue

Everyone that had attacked the PA with Spades and the White Queen got off mostly fine. They had the advantage of surprise and had managed to catch the PA by surprise. Nepeta was missing a few teeth, Terezi had a broken nose, Jake’s glasses were broken and his arm was bleeding, and Rufioh’s wing was hanging at an odd angle. 

Feferi was the only one who was dead. Meenah had carried Eridan out before he could wake up to see her, and Karkat helped Kurloz out. As soon as the PA members saw Meenah, soaked in fuschia blood but still alive, they stopped, and everyone else followed suit, noticing how injured they all were. Dirk had been dragging Mindfang to the door.

“You bitches answer to me, now.” One of the older trolls checked the room, came back out, and nodded. 

From there on out, Karkat wasn’t very involved of much of anything. Meenah did a good job of disbanding the PA and getting the Condesce’s prior vice president and current president to implement the old laws. Curfews went away, legal protections were put back into effect. The prejudice that had been lured out into the open was not quick to go back into hiding, but it was a start.

Darkleer had covered up the Condesce’s murder. None of them were questioned, and the general public was willing to accept that the centuries old ruler had succumbed to age. 

Life was far from normal. Karkat was still harassed sometimes, and the absence of Feferi, Kankri, and Cronus still weighed heavily on him. It weighed heavily on everyone. He saw it in the bags underneath their eyes and the weariness of their voices. The way they never celebrated. Memorials got posted to conspiracy websites that Roxy modded. Though they could never be truly recognized, a couple dozen people ate the truth up.

After a few months his arm healed. He had put on some weight and was sleeping more. Spades had bought a new house a bit farther from the city. Karkat, and most of his friends, were trying to make up for their lack of education as they dealt with the Condesce.

Things weren’t perfect. But he wasn’t as afraid of walking down the street anymore.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So... This has been a long time coming. I fell out of love with this series, and I think this story especially shows it. I want to return to this whole series and edit it, change some things, and make it better. I hope you guys enjoyed this, though, because it was the ending I wrote a few months back and felt strongly about posting. I hope you guys will stick with my writing. Thank you. Until next time~

**Author's Note:**

> Took me a while, I know. I haven't finished writing this yet so I have no clue how many chapters there will be. If this is your first story from me, go check out the first four parts to this series (and, if you like Star Wars, Carry On, Kim Possible, or Carmilla, you should check out some of my other stories). I hope you enjoyed this, so please stick around for the rest. Until next time~


End file.
